State-run Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) which has been struggling financially since the inauguration of Padma Bridge wants to resume its passenger service on a limited scale on two inland routes from Dhaka.
BIWTC used to operate two passenger vessels--MV Madhumati and MV Bangali--on the Dhaka-Morolganj-Dhaka routes. But passenger services had remained suspended since 22 September, 2022 as the number of passengers dropped. The two vessels were the last inland passenger vessels of its fleet. BIWTC, however, continued coastal services.
Once dozens of paddle steamers, including Sandra, Lali, Kiwi, Emu, Pelican, Gazi, Ostrich and Mahsud, were in its fleet. These steamers were built in 1918 and afterwards. They went out of service one after another and finally four paddle steamers–PS Mahsud, PS Lepcha, PS Turn, and PS Ostrich-were in service. They also went out of service just before MV Madhumati and MV Bangali. PS Ostrich has been leased out. They are looking for tour operators to lease out PS Lepcha for tourism purposes as well.
Now BIWTC wants to resume service with Madhumati and paddle steamer Mahsud. Mahsud was repaired in 2020 and has been sitting idle since then.
“We are trying to resume service with MV Madhumati, MV Bangali, and paddle steamer Mahsud soon, maybe within 10-15 days. Primarily, we have selected two routes--Dhaka to Barishal and Dhaka to Ilisha in Bhola,” S M Ashikuzzaman, Director (Commerce) of BIWTC, confirmed to The Business Post.
Officials visited the vessels at steamer ghat in Dhaka on Saturday and found that they will need some facelift before resuming operation.
But things will not be easy for BIWTC as passenger service vessels, owned by private operators, are already struggling to make profit except for some coastal routes following the inauguration of Padma Bridge in June 2022 that has connected the southern region of the country. Passengers now prefer roads to river routes, considering less travel time.
However, Dhaka-Ilisha or Monpura route is still profitable as Bhola district is surrounded by rivers and there is no direct roadway. Private vessels are making profits there.
BIWTC officials said that they are confused if their vessels can make profits on such competitive routes where private operators have rushed in as other routes lost passengers since 2022.
“Another concern is competitive fare. We have a government-fixed fare chart and cannot charge less. Private operators can do that whenever they want. We don’t know how we will survive being a new operator on that route or how they will welcome us. We will need route permits to operate vessels to coastal destinations like Ilisha, and Monpura as well,” said S M Ashikuzzaman.
Primarily, BIWTC has a plan to conduct trial run at least once a week on this route.
The second plan is to operate PS Mahsud as day service to Barishal targeting tourists. Paddle steamer PS Mahsud was built in 1928 and has worldwide historic value in waterway passenger service.
“We believe that tourists from home and abroad and common passengers will show interest to make day trips on this vessel,” the BIWTC official said.
BIWTC struggling financially
BIWTC operates ferry service, coastal passenger service, container and cargo service, ship repair, and wrecker services. Of them, they earned most of revenues from ferry services. This corporation runs on its earnings.
Officials said that they have been struggling financially since the inauguration of Padma Bridge as ferry services, which used to make most profits, are not getting enough passenger vehicles to carry.
They discontinued once-busy ferry routes like Shimulia-Banglabazar and Shimulia-Majhirkandi. Besides, due to the current economic crisis in the country, the number of trucks making trips using ferries has also declined.
“Passenger vessel services have been a loss project for a long time. But we used to cover up that by revenue earned from ferry services,” said the BIWTC director.
The corporation's earnings dropped more than 50 per cent recently and they are struggling to pay the salaries of the staff. The corporation is now resorting to prematurely withdrawing fixed deposit receipts. This fund will run out soon.
The resumption of inland passenger service on a limited scale is a part of their initiative to earn some revenue and keep them running to avoid running down permanently.
The authorities are also thinking of proposing to the government to provide BIWTC with subsidy to keep the corporation afloat.
