AFTER the tragic death of thousands in several incidents of launch capsize in inland waterways, the government formed a probe body instantly without addressing the internal disorder between Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) and the Department of Shipping (DoS). This daily on Saturday unearthed the loggerhead between the two organisations of the Shipping Ministry for which suggestions of many investigation committees and experts, and government pledges over securing water vessels remain ineffective. It can be said that the indifference of the Ministry to ensure a secured water transportation system by not preventing the infighting between the wings over the jurisdiction of their activities is liable for the tragedies which occur in rivers every year.
The leading daily reported that some of the DoS officials blamed BIWTA for issuing route permits and cancels as per their whims, while BIWTA officials accused the DoS for issuing fitness certificates and launch master certificates by ignoring rules and regulations. The blame game between the duo over the authority to control water vessels, though the Inland Shipping (Amendment) Ordinance 2005 has explicitly spelled the duties of the BIWTA and the DoS, is thus the main reason why the passengers of the country’s inland waterways are repeatedly becoming victims. Section-54 of the Ordinance has authorised BIWTA to issue route permits and time scheduling and the DoS is authorised to issue fitness certificates and others.
The BIWTA can declare unfit any vessel if it is so found even after a few weeks of its operation and the validity of its route permit is cancelled consequently. The owner is then asked to make the vessel fit to secure afresh a new fitness certificate from the DoS but not a route permit as it is under the aegis of the BIWTA, adding extra hassle to the owners of water vessels. The improper decentralisation and balance of power between the duo makes the crisis more fatal. The BIWTA has to depend on DoS’s magistrate though DoS has only four to five officials and suffers from an acute manpower crisis. Masters and drivers are trained by the BIWTA but the DoS take their examinations and issue certificates-this is an asymmetrical system of checks and balances.
Though most of the masters of the water vessels did not undergo training from the BIWTA, they managed certificates and in the case of any naval accident the BIWTA is blamed. Though the Ordinance has bestowed upon the DoS power to conduct almost all the important activities, including the issuing of fitness certificates and inspection, it has only four surveyors, five inspectors and one lawyer to look into the operations of some 10,143 registered water transports. Some 835 cases were filed with the marine court for violation of inland shipping laws between 2013 and July 2014. Of them, 581 cases were disposed of and 254 cases are awaiting disposal. The BIWTA accuses the marine court of not taking their suggestions into consideration. We surprisingly observed the Ministry’s reluctance in fixing the loggerhead between its organisations which allows the unscrupulous vessel owners to kill passengers in inland waterways year after year.
