BRTA to work overtime if needed: Quader
Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) has been asked to prepare a plan and start working to ensure that all vehicles without valid fitness documents can renew fitness certificates by September 30, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said yesterday.
If necessary, BRTA would curtail its weekend and work six days a week, he said at a press briefing at his secretariat office.
The minister said this a day after the High Court directed owners of vehicles without valid fitness documents to collect their fitness certificates in two months, starting August 1.
If an owner fails to do so, their vehicles would not be allowed to ply on the roads after September 30, the HC also said on Tuesday.
The court issued the suo moto (voluntary) rule after BRTA submitted a report before it, saying a total of 4,79,320 vehicles without valid fitness certificates were operating on the roads across the country.
Quader said officials and staff of BRTA had worked till 9pm six days a week to issue registration of vehicles, following student demonstrations in August last year seeking safe roads.
Like previous occasions, BRTA officials and staff will work six days a week now, Quader said.
Asked whether BRTA would be able to check 4.49 lakh vehicles and issue fitness clearance within two months, Quader said manpower of BRTA has been increased and if they work overtime, they will be able to do it.
BRTA issued and renewed fitness certificates of 6.7 lakh vehicles in 2018-19 fiscal.
‘REPAIR FLOOD-DAMAGED ROADS BY SEVEN DAYS BEFORE EID’
Meanwhile, the minister yesterday once again asked authorities concerned to finish repair works of all roads affected by the recent flood at least seven days before Eid-ul-Azha.
Eid is expected to be celebrated in the second week of August.
Quader, also General Secretary of ruling Awami League, gave similar instruction from an emergency meeting at his ministry office on Tuesday.
According to the central control room of Roads and Highways Department, around 400kms of roads and highways under the department have been damaged by floods across the country.
Of the 396.14km flood-affected roads, the highest of 122.48km was damaged in Gaibandha, while 102.4km was affected in Kurigram, 69.5km in Rangpur, and 61.5km in Netrakona. Seven other districts where roads were also damaged are Kishoreganj, Jamalpur, Mymensingh, Moulvibazar, Lalmonirhat, Sylhet, and Habiganj.
Asked whether the RHD will be able to fix 400kms of roads within this short time, Quader said RHD engineers have experience to do such work within this time.
Besides, a monitoring team of the ministry is overseeing the matter, he added.
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