People have begun flooding back into Dhaka after the government relaxed the shutdown over coronavirus with the Eid-ul-Fitr approaching. The Kathalbari-Shimulia route was packed with Dhaka-bound ferries overcrowded by travellers risking infection at a time when the country is grappling with coronavirus crisis. A total of 17 ferries carry passengers across the River Padma on this route, but all the vessels are not in operation at the moment, causing the ones running to be overwhelmed. With buses hard to find in Shimulia dock, these people were catching autorickshaw, pickups, motorcycles, taxi cabs, microbuses and other means of transport to reach their destination. Maybe it's because of the government’s announcement on the reopening of markets.”AGM Shafiqul Islam of Shimulia dock said three ferries operate on the route at daytime and six vessels at night.

Source: bd News24 May 06, 2020 05:15 UTC