Ferry service to be launched on Chilmari-Roumari route tomorrow

State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury will inaugurate the ferry service on Chilmari-Roumari route on the Brahmaputra river in Kurigram tomorrow.

A ferry, Kunjalata, will start operation from Chilmari river port in around noon, our local correspondent reports.

Kunjalata was brought to the port on September 15. Its test run has already been done.

Mahfuzur Rahman, deputy director of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) and also in-charge of Chilmari port, said the decision on the frequency of the ferry service has not yet been taken.

He added that the ferry has the capacity of carrying around 200 passengers, 100 motorcycles, 20 microbuses, and private cars.

The ferry service is expected to ease travel between Jamalpur and Mymensingh districts and the northern districts -- Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, and Rangpur.

Nur Islam, a college teacher in Roumari, said, "Earlier we locals were scared of riding boats in the Brahmaputra river, but now we can travel safely by this ferry."