Several thousand homebound people thronged the Shimulia ferry terminal on Wednesday morning to cross the Padma River five days ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr.
The ferry terminal authorities are struggling a lot to manage the huge rush of home-bound people as only seven ferries are operating now instead of 18-21.
People were seen waiting at the ferry terminal for several hours amid the scorching heat.
Talking to UNB, some passengers said this year the number of ferries is less than the previous year.
The passengers also told that they are going to their homes today to avoid a mad rush.
Soleman, inspector of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) at Shimulia ghat, said currently 153 speedboats and 83 launches are operating on the route as the number of ferries is insufficient.
HM Yeadul Islam, terminal super of BIWTC, said Bangladesh Inland and Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) has taken adequate measures to ensure the safe journey of the homebound people.
“We are trying our best to tackle huge pressure of vehicles,” he said.
The movement of ferries on the Shimulia-Banglabazar route remained suspended since August 18, 2021, due to the strong current in the Padma River. Later the authorities concerned resumed its operation on November 8 during the daytime.
On December 13, the operation of ferries resumed on a limited scale.
Full-fledged operation of ferries resumed on Wednesday with a few numbers of ferries on the route.
