Though the ongoing political violence has been taking a heavy toll, killing and injuring innocents, government high-ups yesterday said the overall law and order situation was improving significantly.
Emerging from an inter-ministerial meeting on law and order situation at the home ministry, senior Awami League leader Amir Hossain Amu said, "The law and order situation has been improving at a very satisfactory pace. Communications between Dhaka and other districts have almost been restored.
"So, the election will take place on time."
Food and Land Minister Amu made the statements before the media around 2:00pm. Six people were killed and scores others injured across the country by that time of the fifth day of the blockade beginning on Saturday. Besides, three passenger trains derailed due to removal of fishplates in Gaibandha, Khulna and Chandpur.
Later in the day, blockaders fought pitched battles with law enforcers at several places in the country.
At least 41 people have been killed and a hundred others injured since November 26 in the violence during hartals and blockades.
Echoing Amu's claim, senior AL leader Tofail Ahmed, who also attended the meeting, said, "The law and order situation is improving rapidly though BNP tried and is trying to foil the upcoming national election by waging agitation."
A source of the meeting said chiefs of police, Border Guard Bangladesh, Special Branch and other intelligence agencies had presented their reports on the prevailing political situation.
They said that at least 1,041 points of around 3,000 kilometres of rail tracks across the country were vulnerable to attacks and over 61 upazilas were violence-prone areas.
The meeting discussed operating electronic trolleys before commuter trains so that trolley operators can warn train drivers about any sabotage of rail tracks. It also spoke of linking trains up with several empty compartments in a bid to save passenger coaches from derailment.
The participants also decided to deploy Ansar and Village Defence Police men at the vulnerable places around the rail tracks, sources said.
To gain control over the political situation, the meeting also decided to form committees comprised of local people and AL men at each polling centres across the country. Such committees will gather information about disturbing elements and keep local law enforcers informed.
Committee members will also work to alert people about those involved in the anarchy.