road crash
Dhaka-Khulna highway turns death trap
The 35 kilometre stretch between Faridpur Sadar and Kamarkhali Bridge in Madhukhali on the Dhaka-Khulna highway has become a virtual death trap for commuters.
In the past 13 months, at least 30 people have reportedly died in different road accidents on the high-speed corridor. Apart from claiming lives, road crashes on the stretch have caused permanent disabilities in hundreds of victims.
Also read: 8 killed in separate road crashes in Faridpur 2 Shares
What's worrying is that accidents and fatalities are on the rise on the stretch despite the local police setting up a number of check posts in accident-prone areas to curb speeding.
On March 21 this year, as many as nine people, including six members of a family, were killed in a collision between a microbus and a truck at Majhkandi on the Dhaka-Khulna highway. All the victims were from Jhenaidah district.
On January 6, 2020, six people, including four members of a family, lost their lives on the same highway when a bus rammed a microbus at high speed.
Read 17 killed Rajshahi road accident
Cops attribute the rise in the number of accidents on the highway to speeding as well as careless and negligent driving.
Superintendent of Faridpur Highway Police, Mostafizur Rahman, told UNB that a number of check posts have been set up on the highway. "But nothing seems to be working."
"Despite accidents on the highway stretch claiming a number of lives every year, there's no end to motorists' fetish for speed," he added.
Also read: Bangladesh's roads remain perilous; 37,170 killed in 5 years
Advocate Shipra Goswami, however, said that "stricter enforcement of law is the need of the hour". "Those involved in reckless driving should be brought to book."
Mohammad Kabirul Islam Siddique, president of Faridpur Press Club, agreed. “Police must strictly enforce traffic rules to curb speeding and accidents on the highway. At the same time, motorists should adhere to speed limits," he said.
Shahrier Rumi, executive engineer of Faridpur Roads and Highways Department, also urged motorists and other occupants of vehicles to stay alert while using the highway.
The highway also known as N7 connects the Daulatdia Ferry Terminal on the south bank of the Padma River near Dhaka with the Port of Mongla in Bagerhat district. It serves some of the largest cities and towns in southwestern Bangladesh, including Faridpur, Magura, Jhenaidah, Jessore, and Khulna.
Also read: 3 dead in Jashore, Panchagarh road accidents
4 killed in Chattogram road crash
Four passengers were killed and three more were injured as two CNG autorickshaws collided with a truck at Rangunia upazila on the Chattogram-Kaptai road.
The incident took place around 8pm on Thursday (March 25) in the Kalugotta area of Chandraghona-Kadamtali union in Rangunia.
Also read: 7 dead, 10 injured in four different road accidents across the country
The deceased were identified as Daisy Dutt (35), Abul Kalam (7), Md. Akbar Hossain (25) and child Adrish Souma.
Rangunia Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mahabub Milki said the two CNG autorickshaws collided with a Chattogram-bound truck from Chandraghona area of Rangamati at Balugutta. Four passengers were taken to Chattogram Medical College Hospital in critical condition and the on-duty doctor declared them dead.
Also Read: Bangladesh's roads remain perilous; 37,170 killed in 5 years
He added that the bodies were kept in the morgue of the hospital and the injured are being treated.
13 die in India road crash
A group of 12 women returning home from work in an auto-rickshaw and its driver were killed when the overloaded three-wheeler collided head-on with a passenger bus in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh Tuesday, police said.
The accident occurred in Madhya Pradesh's princely city of Gwalior, some 400 kms from state capital Bhopal, this morning.
Also read:Pathshala alumnus killed in India road crash
"The bus was travelling at high speed and its driver failed to spot the auto-rickshaw coming from the opposite direction, leading to the fatal crash," Gwalior police chief Amit Sanghi told the media.
While eight of the 12 women -- all temporary cooks at a local government health centre -- and the auto-rickshaw driver died on the spot, four succumbed to their injuries on the way to a nearby hospital, the police chief said.
"Fortunately, passengers travelling in the bus, which was headed to Morena district from Gwalior, escaped unhurt," he added.
Also read: 14 killed in highway crash in India; 4 critically injured
Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan have all expressed grief at the loss of lives. Modi has also announced compensation for the families of the victims.
"PM @narendramodi has approved an ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh each from Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for the next of kin of those who have lost their lives due to the unfortunate accident in Gwalior, MP," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted later in the day.
In his condolence message, President Kovind said, "The news of the death of the passengers, mostly women, in the road accident in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, has deeply saddened me. My heartfelt condolences to the families who lost their loved ones."
A case has been registered against the bus driver for rash and negligent driving. "He fled from the spot. Efforts are on to nab him," the police chief said.
Road accidents are very common in India, with one taking place every four minutes. These accidents are often blamed on poor roads, rash driving and scant regard for traffic laws.
Also read:40 die in India bus accident
Indian government's implementation of stricter traffic laws in recent years have failed to rein in accidents, which claimed over 100,000 lives every year.
8 killed in separate road crashes in Faridpur
At least eight people, including a woman and a child, were killed and 10 others injured in separate road accidents in Madhukhali and Bhanga upazilas of Faridpur district on Sunday.
3 killed in Sirajganj road crash
At least three persons were killed in a head-on collision between a truck and a CNG-run auto-rickshaw on the Bogura-Nagarbari Highway in the Hailaghati area of Shahjadpur upazila early on Friday.
3 dead in Jashore, Panchagarh road accidents
Two people were killed and five others injured after a passenger bus collided head-on with a battery-run three-wheeler in Abhaynagar Upazila of Jashore.
Two die as tractor overturns in Panchagarh
Two persons died while another sustained injuries after a tractor they were travelling in overturned in the Kamlapur area of Panchagarh Sadar upazila early on Friday morning.
Nagarkanda mayor hurt, wife & son killed in accident
Nagarkanda municipality mayor Nimai Chandra Sarkar was seriously injured while his wife, son and a party colleague were killed in a road accident on the Dhaka-Khulna highway on Wednesday night, police said.
7 dead, 10 injured in four different road accidents across the country
At least seven persons have been killed and 10 more got injured in four different road accidents in different parts of the the country on Saturday.
5 killed, 23 injured in bus-truck collision in Sirajganj
At least five people were killed and 23 others were injured in a head-on-collision between a bus and a truck at Konabari in Kamarkhand upazila of Sirajganj district on Tuesday.