Staff Reporter :
The government has increased bus fares and at the same time instructed to display the fare list on all routes of the country.
But, most of the buses plying in the capital didn’t do that.
Passengers allege that supervisers and drivers of the bus are charging extra fares from passengers without showing chart.
Consequently, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has conducted mobile courts at various points of the city stopping the collection of extra fare.
Meanwhile, 18 bus drivers were fined Tk 42,000.
DMP Executive Magistrate Rafiqul Haque conducted a mobile court adjacent to Kalabagan Police Box in the capital on Wednesday (November 10).
Meantime, DMP Executive Magistrate Dr. Sanjay Das conducted another mobile court in the Shahbag area.
The mobile court of two executive magistrates of DMP in Kalabagan and Shahbag fined 18 buses Tk 42,500 only.
It was seen at the Kalabagan bus stand, buses going to Asad Gate from Azimpur-New Market were stopped at Kalabagan signal.
At that time, the executive magistrate stopped at least 25 vehicles and checked whether extra fare was being charged and whether there was a government chart of increased fare in the vehicles.
During the drive, fare chart was not available in most of the buses.
On the spot, evidence was found of taking undue fare.
On these allegations, DMP’s Executive Magistrate has filed a case each against the drivers of eight vehicles in Kalabagan. A fine of Tk 18,000 was collected.
On the other hand, ten buses were fined Tk 24,000 for charging more than the government fixed fare in the Engineers Institution area.
The vehicles plying on the route were also returning the extra fare to the passengers before being caught by the magistrate.
DMP Executive Magistrate Rafiqul Haque told the media that the Executive Magistrates of DMP, BRTA and district administration are conducting mobile courts across the country, including the capital, to curb the anarchy in public transport.
We have taken steps to stop charging extra fare from passengers, he added.
Anarchy has been created massively in the transport sector as most of the buses of the city were charging extra fare defying the instruction of the government.
