S.A Shofiee, Sylhet :
The Sylhet-Zakigonj Highway, the longest Inter district road without ferry Service during the then East-Pakistan has become the woe and suffering for the entire frontier Upazila Zakigonj. The 91-Kilometre long road which is treated as the regional highway is also important for the bilateral trade between Assam (India) and Bangladesh.
This road has been an object of negligence since long, although the Upazila Zakigonj consists of plain land and haor area which are the store house of crops, particularly Aus, Aman and Boro Paddy cultivation as well.
The locals along with transport workers and owners observed a daylong transport strike last month, it has been learnt. Shelim Uddin MP and Executive Engineer Sheik Monirul Islam said that the proposal of renovation and repair has been sent to the concerned Ministry.
It has been learnt that through this Sylhet-Zakigonj Road, Sylhet to Zakigonj, Sylhet to Kanaighat, Sylhet to Beanibazar, South Surma, Barlekha of Moulvibazar have been inter connected and about 10 lakh people of these 6 Upazilas commute with others including the rest of the country. Potholes, crakes, slides, ditches etc. have been persisting all along the road. Pitch has been splashed and ditch, pothole and even big holes have developed resulting in hurdles to vehicular traffic movement. Specially from Shahbag-Atgram-Kaligonj-Zakigonj part has become death-trap to passengers travelling by this route.
Particularly women, children and old passengers fall a victim to the journey on this deplorable road. The road has been fallen out of repair since long. As a result of this dilapidated condition of this road, the journey has become time-killing and boring. Owing to this suffering, people stay indoors unless and until they are either compelled or forced to travel. One bus-passenger and school teacher Mohammed Ali alleged that using sub-standard construction materials like spurious bitumen, or pitch, the plaster of the road has been uprooted. The contractors usually do not work up to standard resulting in deplorable condition of the road. It has been alleged that after being dilapidated, appeal has been made for immediate repair, but engineers, contractors and the officials of Roads and Highway department remain reluctant and they don’t pay heed to this appeal by the docile and helpless passengers of Sylhet-Zakigonj route.
Mr. Abul Khair Chowdhury Secretary of Zakigonj Press Club opined that after independence, no such dilapidated condition of the road occurred, but this time the dilapidation and deplorable condition surpassed all the previous such condition. So far the knowledge in concerned, it has been learnt that even the devastating floods of 1966, 1974, 1987, 1988, 1998 and 2008 could not make such havoc to this road.
One leader Nasim Ahmed of the ruling party opined that slang language or utterance or criticism is to be listened regularly day by day by the passengers. He said becoming a leader of the Ruling Awami League has emerged a curse to his life. He said the road portion of the Zakigonj Upazila Town is too deplorable to ply vehicles. Golapgonj Municipality Materialisation Committee President Salik Ahmed Chowdhury said that the big ditch near Noorjahan Pump on Sylhet-Zakigonj road has been filled up with stone-scratch and sands. If repair or renovation is not done, the condition will go bad to worse in future.
For the deplorable condition, the drivers plight is on quandary. Side by side of the suffering of the passengers, the drivers, the owners of the buses and other vehicles, have become losers economically. Demanding the renovation and repair of the road, transport owners and workers jointly observed strike on 27th July last. Not only that two school children have been killed and others 15 sustained to injuries on 17th September last. The accident attributed to the deplorable condition o Sylhet-Zakigonj Highway too.
Bus driver Badrul Alam said, it appeared the bus might be overturned or would have been turned turtle. I might be with the bus in the ditch, such apprehension or psychological embarrassment always drove us while we are on steering. A Sub Assistant Engineer A.K.M Zakaria said a plan for 12-kilometre repair work with a cost of Tk. 10 Crore has been proposed to Road and Highway Division, Dhaka. The work may begin by December next. Mr. Shelim Uddin MP claimed that he talked to Road & Highway Minister Mr. Obaidul Quader in this regard. A Tk. 200 Crore plan has been take up. He asserted if this is materialised there will be no repair work needed for the next 10 years.
The Sylhet-Zakigonj Highway, the longest Inter district road without ferry Service during the then East-Pakistan has become the woe and suffering for the entire frontier Upazila Zakigonj. The 91-Kilometre long road which is treated as the regional highway is also important for the bilateral trade between Assam (India) and Bangladesh.
This road has been an object of negligence since long, although the Upazila Zakigonj consists of plain land and haor area which are the store house of crops, particularly Aus, Aman and Boro Paddy cultivation as well.
The locals along with transport workers and owners observed a daylong transport strike last month, it has been learnt. Shelim Uddin MP and Executive Engineer Sheik Monirul Islam said that the proposal of renovation and repair has been sent to the concerned Ministry.
It has been learnt that through this Sylhet-Zakigonj Road, Sylhet to Zakigonj, Sylhet to Kanaighat, Sylhet to Beanibazar, South Surma, Barlekha of Moulvibazar have been inter connected and about 10 lakh people of these 6 Upazilas commute with others including the rest of the country. Potholes, crakes, slides, ditches etc. have been persisting all along the road. Pitch has been splashed and ditch, pothole and even big holes have developed resulting in hurdles to vehicular traffic movement. Specially from Shahbag-Atgram-Kaligonj-Zakigonj part has become death-trap to passengers travelling by this route.
Particularly women, children and old passengers fall a victim to the journey on this deplorable road. The road has been fallen out of repair since long. As a result of this dilapidated condition of this road, the journey has become time-killing and boring. Owing to this suffering, people stay indoors unless and until they are either compelled or forced to travel. One bus-passenger and school teacher Mohammed Ali alleged that using sub-standard construction materials like spurious bitumen, or pitch, the plaster of the road has been uprooted. The contractors usually do not work up to standard resulting in deplorable condition of the road. It has been alleged that after being dilapidated, appeal has been made for immediate repair, but engineers, contractors and the officials of Roads and Highway department remain reluctant and they don’t pay heed to this appeal by the docile and helpless passengers of Sylhet-Zakigonj route.
Mr. Abul Khair Chowdhury Secretary of Zakigonj Press Club opined that after independence, no such dilapidated condition of the road occurred, but this time the dilapidation and deplorable condition surpassed all the previous such condition. So far the knowledge in concerned, it has been learnt that even the devastating floods of 1966, 1974, 1987, 1988, 1998 and 2008 could not make such havoc to this road.
One leader Nasim Ahmed of the ruling party opined that slang language or utterance or criticism is to be listened regularly day by day by the passengers. He said becoming a leader of the Ruling Awami League has emerged a curse to his life. He said the road portion of the Zakigonj Upazila Town is too deplorable to ply vehicles. Golapgonj Municipality Materialisation Committee President Salik Ahmed Chowdhury said that the big ditch near Noorjahan Pump on Sylhet-Zakigonj road has been filled up with stone-scratch and sands. If repair or renovation is not done, the condition will go bad to worse in future.
For the deplorable condition, the drivers plight is on quandary. Side by side of the suffering of the passengers, the drivers, the owners of the buses and other vehicles, have become losers economically. Demanding the renovation and repair of the road, transport owners and workers jointly observed strike on 27th July last. Not only that two school children have been killed and others 15 sustained to injuries on 17th September last. The accident attributed to the deplorable condition o Sylhet-Zakigonj Highway too.
Bus driver Badrul Alam said, it appeared the bus might be overturned or would have been turned turtle. I might be with the bus in the ditch, such apprehension or psychological embarrassment always drove us while we are on steering. A Sub Assistant Engineer A.K.M Zakaria said a plan for 12-kilometre repair work with a cost of Tk. 10 Crore has been proposed to Road and Highway Division, Dhaka. The work may begin by December next. Mr. Shelim Uddin MP claimed that he talked to Road & Highway Minister Mr. Obaidul Quader in this regard. A Tk. 200 Crore plan has been take up. He asserted if this is materialised there will be no repair work needed for the next 10 years.
