Wildcat bus strike isolates Rajshahi

Hundreds of people in Rajshahi suffered as owners and workers of buses began an indefinite strike yesterday halting passenger travel between the district and the rest of the country.

Sufferings mounted when passengers realised that there was no scheduled train between Rajshahi and the capital in the morning.

Talking to The Daily Star around 11:00am, Amjad Hossain, superintendent of Rajshahi Railway Station, said there were two trains in the afternoon and at night, but tickets for those were sold out.

Rajshahi District Transport Workers' Union called the strike demanding removal of all illegal vehicles, including human haulers and three-wheelers, from highways. They announced the strike after a procession Saturday afternoon.

"The strike began at 5:00am. We gave several ultimatums earlier, including a 72-hour one on November 9. But, the authorities paid no heed to our demand," said Mahtab Hossain, general secretary of the union.

Mahtab said the administration is not playing any role to prevent movement of illegal vehicles on the highway. "I am now stranded in Rajshahi," said Sumi, an admission seeker of Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (Ruet) from Dhaka.  

Ismail Hossain, an official of a private firm, said he could not go to his office in the capital.

Rajshahi Deputy Commissioner Mesbah Uddin Chowdhury said they are regularly conducting mobile court drives against movement of illegal vehicles on highways.