Why continues robbery on Dhaka-Chattogram Highway goes unchecked?

Robbery at different points of the busy Dhaka-Chattogram Highway continues unabated at night, causing severe panic among the commuters and transport operators.

A newspaper report on Sunday said that a group of masked men have unleashed a wave of terror on the highway near Panthachila area in Sitakunda upazila, leaving behind a trail of looted vehicles and injured passengers.

The incident occurred on Saturday midnight, marks the latest in a series of robberies that have plagued this very crucial business route.

According to the report, at least ten vehicles became victims to the robber gang in one night.

The gang targetted vehicles by hurling iron rods, compelling the drivers to stop and check their cars.

Taking advantage of this, the robbers snatched away all the passengers’ belongings — cash and kind — like money, mobile sets, and other valuables, say the victims.

On the other hand, police say most of the criminals aged between 20 and 40 are addicts and frequently change their location during raids.

Several groups of robbers equipped with arms are active in different parts of the highway such as in Chattogram, Feni and Cumilla.

However, police said the robbers also commit the crime either masquerading as policemen or passengers.

They stop vehicles on the highway sometimes posing as law enforcers and sometimes getting on night coaches in the guise of ordinary passengers.

Besides, many points of the highway plunge into darkness after night falls for lack of street lights, facilitating robbers to prey on their targets.

According to cops, the victims often opt to not report the crimes to police fearing legal hassles.

On April 7, 10 highway robbers were arrested during a drive in Sitakunda’s Faujdarhat area and recovered firearms, ammunition, and knives from their possession.

It is to be noted that following the demand of the business community and transport bodies, steps are underway to install 1,460 CCTV cameras at 490 spots of the 265-kilometre highway.

The project, taken up several years ago at a cost of Tk 1.52 billion is now being implemented.

The project is likely to be completed by June next year.

Despite all these measures including introduction of highway police, robbery incidents are rampant on Dhaka-Chattogram Highway. The situation needs to be dealt with iron hand for the greater interest of the national economy.