Ferry service on Shimulia-Kathalbari route resumes partially

The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) has resumed ferry services on Shimulia-Kathalbari route partially from this morning after keeping it suspended for around five and half hours due to poor navigability.

The ferry service on the River Padma has been resumed from 4:00 am early today in a limited form as water level on the channel went down, said BIWTC Assistant General Manager Khandaker Shah Khaled Newaz.

Earlier, on Saturday around 10:30 pm the service was suspended on the route as it became impossible to ply ferries on the route, he added.

Meanwhile, several hundred vehicles remained stuck on both sides of the river, creating long tailbacks and causing immense sufferings to hundreds of passengers who were returning to the capital after passing Eid holidays at their village homes.

Ro-Ro ferry service was also suspended due to the same reason from Saturday morning.

Moreover, plying of launches and speedboats were also remained halted as several dredgers were in operation on the route to ensure the navigability.

Meanwhile, since Sunday morning a huge number of passengers crowded at the launch terminal to cross the mighty river as most of them have to attend office on the first working day after the Eid holiday.

In this route, a total of 87 launches and 4 hundred speedboats carry passengers.