500 kids drive CNG-run three-wheelers in Bogra
Only 100 out of 5,000 have genuine license
Running of three-wheelers by under-aged boys is a common scene in Bogra town and adjoining highways, thanks to the authorities' utter callousness about child labour as well as safety of passengers.Photo: STAR
A staggering five thousand people including a good number of teenagers are engaged in driving compressed natural gas (CNG) and battery run three-wheelers in the district without any valid driving license for long, said officials of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) in Bogra. "According to field level reports, only 100 people hold genuine licenses to drive CNG run three-wheelers in the district," said Md Gias Uddin, assistant director of BRTA, Bogra office. Many teenagers are driving battery and CNG run three-wheelers in Bogra town and a few highways in the district in violation of traffic rules, he said. The number of such teenage drivers in the district would be over 500, BRTA sources said. Besides, at least 1500 CNG run three-wheelers out of a total 4000 ply different areas of Bogra district without any registration and valid documents, the BRTA official said. Md Asadur Rahman Dulu, president of Bogra district unit of CNG run auto-rickshaw and tempo owners association, admitted that most of the CNG run three-wheeler drivers are doing the job without any driving license and valid documents. "Not a single battery run three-wheeler has received any registration during the last two years. Around 900 battery run three-wheelers are moving in the district without any valid document," said Md Lutful Bari Babu, convener of battery run auto-rickshaw owners association in Bogra district. "During a drive at Lichotala in Shahjahanpur upazila of Bogra on September 4, a mobile court found that only four out of 18 vehicles had driving license. The court also found a fake bus driving license on the spot," said a BRTA inspector. Bogra traffic police office sources said more than 200 technically unfit 'auto tempos' (three-wheelers carrying eight to ten passengers each) have been moving in the district without valid documents and competent drivers for long. Some teenagers and unskilled people are also doing the job of mini truck drivers in the district for years. "I have been driving a battery-run three-wheeler during last one and a half months. Earlier I worked as a goldsmith in Bogra town. I have no idea about driving rules and signals. Normally I carry four to five passengers per trip in Bogra town and nearby highways,” said 10-year-old Md Shakib, son of Ruhul Amin of Fulbari area in Bogra town. Md Shahin Alam, 35, driver of a CNG run three-wheeler registered from Sirajganj, said he has no driving license but nobody asked him about it during last three years.
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