Bhairab tragedy: Top rail authorities will have to take the blame
NO, don’t call it an accident caused by negligence to duty by the relevant lineman at the Bhairab Rail Station on Monday afternoon when a freight train hit an express train Egarosindur Godhuli Express.
It is a cold-blooded murder because rail authorities clearly know that their failure to ensure smooth operation of trains can cause disaster at any moment like the one in Bhairab that claimed at least 20 lives and injured about 100 passengers.
A minute’s variance in signalling trains can spell disaster of a cataclysmic proportion.
For the Bhairab accident, the lineman alone was not at fault; his employing authorities including the rail minister must take the responsibility of the tragedy.
In any civilized country, for an accident like what happened in Bharab the rail minister would have resigned on his own because he could not face the relatives of those who perished.
But Bangladesh is not a civilized place where the power that be is not accountable to people. Hence, we have not seen any statement from the top of the railway ministry regarding the accident.
In Bangladesh where the transport sector is controlled by influential people, rail is very popular among the travelers both for the long and short distances, because it is relatively cheap and safe.
Even then, the numbers of people who die in rail accidents are not so small. According to an estimate, 131 people were killed and 110 injured in 137 rail accidents in the country in the first six months of this year.
In this age of super technology, many countries have been able to establish a foolproof rail network, but in Bangladesh despite spending thousands of crores of taka the railway has not become risk-free.
Here, a lion’s share of development expenditure has been spent on building new railway lines and station buildings. Reportedly, repair of old railway lines was not given importance.
One after another new trains have been launched without provision of adequate engine-coaches.
Among the major causes of rail accidents in Bangladesh are outdated engines and coaches, old and dilapidated railway lines and dangerous bridges, old and faulty signaling systems, unguarded level crossings, inadequate manpower and lack of proper vigilance.
Train derailment is the most common accident in Bangladesh. The important thing, however, is these shortcomings or causes of rail accidents are easily preventable.
Two glaring things are easily noticeable. One, people’s lives are not regarded here as valuable things: no one in the government seems to care about the lives being perished in accidents.
Two, public properties and funds are not taken care of with the care it deserves. Unless this attitude changes, we will not see any improvement in things.
