No let-up in road deaths

A police sub-inspector lost his life in a rather unusual road accident in the capital's Mirpur area yesterday as his motorbike was hit by a seized bus being brought to a police station.

Besides, at least 15 more people were killed in road crashes across the country. Of them, seven were killed in a head-on collision between two buses in Rangpur, three each in the capital and Bogra, and one each in Narayanganj and Chittagong. Around 60 people were wounded.

In the capital, Uttam Kumar Sarkar, SI of Rupnagar Police Station, was tasked with bringing the bus of Eagle Paribahan to the police station from Mirpur Beribadh area.  

The Barisal-bound bus was seized four days ago after its brake failed and hit the jeep of a Jahangirnagar University teacher near Birulia in Mirpur area. It was kept there since then.

Around 4:00pm yesterday, the police official, who was riding a motorbike, asked an Eagle Paribahan staffer to drive the bus and follow him to the police station.

When Uttam slowed his motorcycle at a speed breaker at Mirpur's Rainkhola, the bus's brake failed again and the vehicle rammed his motorcycle.

He got tossed onto the road and the bike went under the bus. The vehicle drove over his body and stopped after running a few yards, according to the statement of a case filed by Uttam's brother Dipankar Sarkar last night.

The SI died on the spot, said police and witnesses. 

Police arrested the bus driver, Belal Hossain, 38, who was accused in the case.    

Asked why a wrecker was not used, SM Shah Alam, officer-in-charge of Rupnagar Police Station, said the SI had been asked to bring the bus, using a wrecker.

The OC further said they had asked for a wrecker but it was not known why the SI didn't use it.

Meanwhile, two bikers and a pedestrian were killed in two road accidents in the capital yesterday.

A lorry hit the motorbike carrying the two near Dainik Bangla intersection around 10:30pm, leaving them dead on the spot, said Golam Rabbani, an inspector of Motijheel Police Station. The victims are Jan-E-Alam and Ripon Sikder.

The other victim was run over by a vehicle at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport intersection. Police recovered the body around 5:00am.

Airport police said they were yet to identify the victim.

In Rangpur, at least seven people were killed and 20 others injured as a bus of Rabbi Paribahan collided head-on with a Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) bus in the city's CO Bazar area at 12:15pm.

When the BRTC bus, heading towards Panchagarh from Bogra, reached near Khan Refuelling station, the Rangpur-bound Rabbi Paribahan bus from Thakurgaon suddenly appeared in the middle of the highway while overtaking a three-wheeler, said police quoting witnesses.

Both the drivers were driving recklessly, said witnesses.

Four people were killed on the spot while three others died from their wounds at Rangpur Medical College Hospital (RMCH).

The dead were identified as Roksana Begum, 20, from Gaibandha, Abdur Rahman, 70, from Thakurgaon, Shahin Mia, 12, from Panchagarh, Sumi Akter, 22, from Rangpur, and Nur Banu, 45, Sefali Begum, 50, and Amijan Begum, 45, from Nilphamari.

The injured were admitted to the RMCH, and the condition of eight of them was critical, said doctors.

Saiful Islam, additional superintendent (Circle A) of Rangpur police, said road communication between Rangpur and several northern districts remained suspended for around an hour following the accident. It was restored around 2:00pm.

Rangpur district administration formed a three-member committee led by Additional District Magistrate Monnaf Kabir to probe the incident.  It has been asked to submit its report within seven working days.

In Bogra, three people were killed and 39 injured in two road accidents in Sherpur upazila early yesterday.

A Bogra-bound bus of Ena Paribahan collided with a Dhaka-bound bus of Chandni Paribahan in front of Sherpur Fire Service Station on Dhaka-Bogra highway around midnight, said Humayun Kabir, OC of Sherpur Police Station.

Mithu Akanda, 35, the driver of the Chandni Paribahan bus, and Sazzad Hossain, a passenger of the Ena Paribahan bus, were killed in the accident that left 29 others wounded, he added.

In the other accident, a SR Travels bus hit a parked pick-up at Dhunat intersection on Dhaka-Bogra Highway around 1:00am, leaving the bus helper, Zahidul Haq, 38, dead. Ten others were also injured, said police.

Besides, a woman was killed as a bus carrying workers ran over her in Narayanganj's Siddhirganj area while she was crossing the road around 7:00am.

The dead was identified as Minu Akter, 55, a resident in Siddhirganj Pool area, said SI Russel Ahmed of Siddhirganj Police Station.

Police are trying to arrest the bus driver, he added.

In another accident, a mentally challenged woman lost her life when a vehicle hit her on Dhaka-Chittagong highway in Chittagong's Sitakunda upazila around 11.00am yesterday.

Ahsan Habib, OC of Baroaulia Highway Police Station, said the woman -- Asma Beguma, 65, from Sitakunda upazila -- was crossing the highway.

According to a recent report of Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, at least 259 people were killed and 960 injured in 237 road accidents from August 16 to 28, when the transport sector saw a huge rush of passengers due to the Eid vacation.

The report, released by the passenger welfare platform at a press conference on Friday, pointed out that the accidents took place despite the measures taken by the authorities to ensure road safety following the recent student demonstration for safe roads.

[Our correspondents in Dinajpur, Bogra, Narayanganj and Chittagong contributed to this report]