Navigability poor, yet no fund allocated for it

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) has allocated no money for maintaining navigability of the Sadarghat-Ashulia circular waterway so far despite earning about Tk 6.73 crore in the last three years by leasing different landing stations.
The 29.5km first phase waterway is already facing poor navigability, said cargo operators and BIWTA officials.
The width of the waterway, which was opened on March 3, 2005, has also reduced from 120 feet to 100 feet thanks to lack of maintenance, they added.
The waterway earned the money from 10 landing stations including Showarighat, Nobaberbagh, Kholamora, Basila, Amin Bazar, Gabtoli, Shinnirtek, Birulia and Ashulia since 2006, said an official.
It has already failed to attract passengers, which was one of its main objectives and would lose the remaining attraction if the authorities don't take proper initiatives to do maintenance dredging.
About 100 sand and brick carrying cargo boats and around 200 engine boats ply every day on the route, and the number almost doubles during the rainy season, says a BIWTA official.
BIWTA Chairman Abdul Mannan Hawladar said they could not conduct maintenance dredging due to lack of equipment as they have only seven dredgers, two of which are out of order.
The functioning five dredgers remain busy at different important points including Mawa, Doulatdia-Paturia Ferry Ghat and Baghabari, he said, adding maintenance will be possible after purchasing some new dredgers which is underway.
Mohammad Sohrab Hossain, operator of a 10-foot-high and 100-foot-long cargo boat plying on the route, said they are facing obstacles since last year at different points between Birulia and Ashulia.
Small cargo boats don't face this problem yet but big ones are facing a lot of problems, he added.
Mohammad Amir Hossain, operator of an eight-foot-high cargo boat, said they face obstacles at different points in Chatbari and Birulia.
The big boats, which could ply smoothly through the channel even two years ago, now have to wait for high tide at many points from Chatbari to Ashulia, he said.
Turning the big vessels has also become difficult at some points due to reduced width, he said.
Motor launches started carrying passenger from Gabtoli and Shinnirtek on inter-district routes from April 12, 2005. But the service stopped in two months due to poor number of passengers, said an official of BIWTA.
People are not interested in travel by launch as they can go to Sadarghat by road which is time saving, he said.