B Mirror Report: On Saturday, the second day of the Eid-ul-Fitr holiday exodus, Kamalapur Railway Station saw a notable increase in passengers as many people flocked to the platforms to get home before the celebration.
For early travelers, however, the trip was not always easy.
Five of the twenty-three intercity trains failed to run on time by 2:00 pm on Saturday, leaving passengers to wait up to an hour. The delays were minimized by railway officials, who said that a wait of 30 to 60 minutes is typical and reasonable during the Eid travel rush.
The Dhaka–Cox’s Bazar Tourist Express departed at 6:50 am, about 35 minutes later than its scheduled time.
The Teesta Express bound for Jamalpur was delayed by 20 minutes, while the Mahanagar Provati train heading to Chattogram left at 8:50 am, more than one hour later than its scheduled departure.
The Burimari Express and Agnibina Express also experienced delays of 30 minutes and 20 minutes, respectively.
Kamalapur Station Master Anwar Hossain said the situation remained under control.
“We do not consider a 20–30 minute gap as a delay in the context of Eid travel. So far, passengers are travelling without major disruption,” he told bdnews24.com.
Many passengers had planned their trips a week earlier to avoid the usual last-minute Eid congestion.
“My siblings and I decided to leave early to avoid the crowds, but even today the train is 50 minutes late and has not even arrived at the platform yet,” said Tasnim Jannat Sayan, a university student travelling to Chattogram.
By the afternoon, the platforms appeared almost empty as trains started arriving well ahead of their departure times.
The Subarna Express, scheduled to depart at 4:30 pm, arrived at the platform at 3:00 pm.
To manage the seasonal rush, authorities introduced a two-tier security and ticket-checking system. Passengers must show their tickets at the main station entrance and again before entering the platforms.
Sajedul Hossain, a Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) on the Subarna Express, said that no passenger will be allowed to board without a ticket.
“We are allowing standing tickets for additional family members in certain cases,” he added.
