United News of Bangladesh

Ferry movement on two of the country’s vital waterways came to a halt on Saturday morning due to heavy fog on the Padma River, disrupting transportation for several hours. However, services resumed after a three-hour shutdown. While there was no fog overnight, a sudden fog engulfed the river basin early on Saturday. As a result, ferry services on Manikganj’s Aricha and Pabna Kazirhat routes were suspended at 6:20am. The shutdown lasted until 9:35am, when ferry operations resumed, according to The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC). Ferry services on Chilmari-Roumari route suspended for 17 days In addition, ferry movement between Manikganj’s Paturia and Rajbari’s Daulatdia was also affected. The fog caused ferries to stop operating from 7:20 am at Paturia and from 7:30 am at Daulatdia. Services on this route resumed around 10:15 am, nearly three and a half hours later. Aricha BIWTC Assistant General Manager Mohammad Salah Uddin said there was no fog on the river overnight, and it was only in the early hours of Saturday that the fog became dense, hampering ferry operations. At the Daulatdia ghat, approximately six ferries were stationed with loaded vehicles while four more ferries were anchored at Paturia. Zaman Paribahan Supervisor Monir Hossain said several buses, along with other vehicles, reached the ferry terminal around 7 am. Following the fog, authorities halted all ferry operations. As a result, at least a hundred Dhaka-bound vehicles were stranded at the ghat.

Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, Bangladesh's state minister for shipping, on Wednesday (January 17, 2024) said the ferry, Rajanigandha, capsized in the Padma River near Paturia ferry terminal in Manikganj after being hit by a bulkhead.“Primarily, it is known that the ferry was anchored near the ghat and a bulkhead hit the ferry,” he said while talking to reporters at the secretariat. The actual reason could be known after getting probe report, he said. Ferry driver missing after it capsizes with vehicles in Padma River“Rajanigandha ferry is a utility ferry and there were a small number of vehicles on it. When vehicles started to board it ,the authorities usually maintain balance and whether the authorities followed it properly at that time it will be known later,” said the minister.The ferry authorities said they anchored the ferry due to dense fog and when they started their journey around 1:30 am from Daulatpur ghat the sky was clear but when they reached near Paturia they experienced poor visibility due to dense fog, he said.A secretary-level officer is on the spot and he will take necessary steps, said Khalid.Mentioning that Bulkhead is needed for transporting goods, the minister said, “The ministry is looking how to modernize those and register those and the Department of Shipping (DoS) is working on it.” Daulatdia-Paturia ferry services resume after 7 hoursA man identified as Humayun Kabir, 39, second master of the ferry, went missing as the ferry on the Daulatdia-Paturia route with nine trucks capsized near No 5 ghat in Paturia of Manikganj district earlier today.

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) on Saturday suspended launch services on Daulatdia-Paturia and Aricha-Kazirhat routes as Cyclone Mocha approaches the coast. Traffic Inspector at the Ghat, Aftab Hossain, said launch services remained suspended from Saturday morning. The order will remain in force until further notice. Also Read: Cyclone Mocha: Launch services on Chandpur route suspended According to the latest weather bulletin, the very severe cyclonic storm Mocha over east central Bay and the adjoining area is likely to intensify further, move in a north-northwesterly direction and cross Cox’s Bazar-North Myanmar coast by 6 pm on Sunday (May 14).    

State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury on Friday requested passengers to take Paturia route in Manikganj instead of Shimulia to cross the Padma during Eid journey as a lower number of ferries are in service at Shimulia. There are 10 ferries on service in Shimulia of Munshiganj, 21 in Paturia of Manikganj and four in Aricha. In the morning there is extra pressure of passengers and vehicles in Shimulia terminal, said the state minister while inspecting the Shimulia launch and ferry terminal at Munshiganj. Also read:Mad rush of homebound people at Shimulia ferry ghat As per the previous instructions, heavy vehicles are not being allowed to cross the ferry in Shimulia and only small vehicles are being ferried at Shimulia terminal, he said. “I am requesting to use Paturia route instead of Shimulia to avoid additional traffic congestion.” Considering the overall safety of the Padma Bridge, 10 good quality ferries have been in service at Shimulia terminal, said Khalid. “I request you to follow the instructions of the government. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will open the Padma Bridge for traffic in the next few months.”

Hundreds of buses, cars and trucks remained stranded at Paturia Ghat on Friday due to the onrush of homebound people ahead Eid-ul-Fitr. A long tailback has been seen on Paturia road since the morning. Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) sources said over 700 vehicles including private vehicles, passenger buses, and trucks were stranded at Paturia Ghat, causing immense suffering to commuters. Over 500 freight trucks and 200 hundred other vehicles were waiting to get on the ferries. READ: Passengers suffer as traffic piles up at Paturia Ghat Shah Nawaz, Deputy General Manager (DGM) of BIWTC Aricha Sector, said that 17 ferries have been operating on this route as Banalata and Rajnigandha ferries were out of order. As normal cargo truck crossings will be closed three days before the Eid, they are waiting for the crossing now, he added. Meanwhile, many of the bus and truck drivers stranded at Paturia said that the suffering would increase further as Eid festival is getting closer.

Two weeks after its sinking the Ro Ro ferry Amanat Shah was salvaged from Padma River on Tuesday. Joint director of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority Fazlur Rahman supervising the salvage operation told UNB the ferry has been handed over to deputy director general of Bangladesh inland Water Transport Corporation, Zillur Rahman on Tuesday evening. The ferry was salvaged by private company Genuine Enterprise appointed by the BIWTA. Also read: Private company begins salvage work of sunken ferry Shah Amanat Pontoon has been constructed at the Terminal 5 of Paturia, where the vessel sank, so it can operate again, said Fazlur Rahman. The salvaged ferry is currently anchored near terminal 4 and on Wednesday it will be adjoined with the floating factory Madhumati of Terminal 5, he said. Manager of Genuine Enterprize Ajay Debnath said, the ferry was salvaged with the help of five barge winch machines and it will be kept under observation for the next two days. On October 27, MV Amanat Shah capsized near Paturia's fifth ferry terminal while preparing to dock. It was carrying 14 goods-laden trucks and four motorcycles at the time. Also read: Paturia ferry accident: Salvage vessel ‘Rustom’ joins rescue operation on day 4 Rustom and Hamza two ships worked to rescue the vehicles that went down in the river along with the ferry. Later a Tk 2 crore worth deal was signed with Chattogram-based Genuine Enterprise to salvage the ferry.

The operation to salvage sunken ferry Shah Amanat was suspended once again on the fifth day of the work on Sunday.   So far, eight covered vans, six trucks and five motorcycles were pulled out of water since the ferry careened and sank on Wednesday at Paturia terminal. READ: 4 km long tailback of vehicles at Daulatdia ferry terminal Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) joint director and in-charge of the rescue operation Fazlur Rahman said further action will be taken as per the decision of the inter-ministerial meeting in Dhaka. He added that the ministry will decide when the salvage operation will begin again. However, the salvage vessels ‘Hamza’ and ‘Rustam’ have been kept on standby at the spot. Fire service divers, naval teams and Coast Guard rescue workers are also awaiting further instructions. Meanwhile, the salvaged vehicles have been handed over to the owners. However, the owners complained that the goods in the truck were not recovered. The owners also demanded compensation. READ: Paturia ferry accident: Salvage vessel ‘Rustom’ joins rescue operation on day 4 Earlier on Wednesday morning, the MV Shah Amanat capsized near Paturia's fifth ferry terminal while preparing to dock. It was carrying 14 goods-laden trucks and four motorcycles at the time. On the following day, the shipping ministry and Manikganj deputy commissioner formed two separate committees to investigate the incident.

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) is capable of salvaging the Ro-Ro ferry, the Shah Amanat, and if needed the ferry will be rescued using private salvage vessel, said its Chairman Commodore Golam Sadeq on Friday. "Vehicles that are still submerged in the water need to be salvaged first," he said. BIWTA chairman made this remark while inspecting the salvage operation on the 3rd day at the Paturia Ferry Terminal. Also read: Paturia ferry accident: Rustom to join rescue ops; one more van retrieved "Besides BIWTA salvage vessel Hamza, another vassel 'Rustam', instead of 'Prattoy', is being brought from Shimulia and it will reach Paturia by Friday evening," said the BIWTA chairman. He also said only four trucks are yet to be salvaged. "I hope the vehicles will be salvaged by tomorrow." Also read: Ferry capsizes at Paturia dock Earlier on Wednesday morning, the MV Shah Amanat capsized near Paturia's fifth ferry terminal while preparing to dock. It was carrying 14 goods-laden trucks and four motorcycles at the time. On the following day, the Shipping Ministry and Manikganj Deputy Commissioner formed two separate committees to investigate the incident.

One more vehicle was fished out of the river Friday as the salvage of the ferry that sank at Paturia dock Wednesday continued. Around 12.30pm, a van was retrieved from the river. So far, a total of four trucks, six vans and a motorcycle have been recovered from the water. Meanwhile, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) chairman Golam Md Sadek said that rescue vessel Prottoy would take some time to reach the dock due to strong currents. "However, rescue ship Rustom may reach the dock by this evening and assist Hamza in the rescue operations. After retrieving all the vehicles, the ferry will be pulled out of the river through alternative arrangements if Rustom and Hamza fail to do it," he said. READ: Ferry capsizes at Paturia dock Meanwhile, the in-charge of the rescue mission unit and joint director of BIWTA, Fazlur Rahman said three more vans and a motorcycle were detected and would be fished out in phases. Meanwhile none of the recovered vehicles has been handed over to their owners, many of whom gathered at the dock this morning. The two probe committees formed by the Ministry of Shipping and Manikganj district administration visited the accident spot at Paturia terminal-5 on Thursday evening. Head of the district probe committee, additional magistrate Sanwarul Haque said that "a report will be submitted within seven working days". READ: Strong current disrupts ferry services, hundreds of vehicles stranded at Paturia Around 9.30am on October 27, the ferry -- Amanat Shah -- capsized near Paturia's number five ferry terminal with 14 trucks, vans and seven motorcycles on board. The vessel tilted after water gushed in through a crack in its bottom while it was preparing to anchor at the dock.

A ferry carrying vehicles capsized at the Paturia dock on Wednesday morning. Fortunately, no casualties have been reported. The accident occurred around 9am near Paturia's number five ferry terminal when the vessel, Shah Amanat, was preparing to anchor at the dock. READ: India ferry tragedy: One dead, two missing, 87 rescued The ferry was heading towards Aricha from Rajbari’s Daulatdia ghat and was carrying trucks, vans and motorcycles, sources at the Fire Services headquarters told UNB. Some of the people on the ferry managed to swim ashore when it sank, the sources said. READ: 60 'missing' in India ferry accident "Members of the diving unit of the fire services have been pressed into action," they added.