Sagar Biswas :
Unauthorized and unmanned railway level-crossings in the capital and elsewhere in the country have appeared as deadlier threats causing fatal accidents almost often, but the Ministry of Railways [BR] has not yet taken any initiative to deal with the danger.
As an eyewash technique, the BR authorities recently have started process to employ 1,846 gatekeepers on temporary basis at the unauthorized level-crossings across the country apparently to legalise the long-standing unlawful system.
In the first phase, the gatekeepers would be employed at high-risk level-crossings. Of them, 1038 gatekeepers would be appointed at eastern zone and rest 808 to get employment at Western Zone, officials said.
Sources close to the BR said there are 2,541 level-crossings in 2,877 kilometer railway track. That means there is one level-crossing in one kilometer. Out of 1,230 level crossings in the Eastern Zone, 719 are illegal. Not only that, there are also not enough guards in the authorized 541 level-crossings.
In the latest incident, five persons, including two children and their mothers, were killed at an unmanned level crossing in Gazipur on January 8. The accident occurred when their car was going over the Shonakhali level crossing in Kaliakoir hit by Maitree Express.
According to an estimation, about 213 people were killed in accidents at different level crossings on the Narayanganj-Dhaka-Joydebpur section alone in 2016.
“Only 400 gates are legal in the eastern zone. The rest 800 level-crossings are totally illegal. A total of 1,806 people were killed in accidents at the level crossings only in the Eastern Zone in the last six years,” Railway’s General Manager [Eastern Zone] Md Abdul Hai said.
On the other hand, about half of total 1,300 level crossings in the Western Zone are totally unauthorized. So, accidents are very common in these level-crossings.
As per law, if there is any level-crossing within 10 years of setting up any Railway track, the total responsibility will be taken by the railway authority. But in most cases, the District Administration, Upazila Parishad, Pourashava, Union Parishad, City corporation and other government and non-government organizations are creating unauthorized level-crossings as per their wish.
But the authorities seldom take any action in this regard.
Officials said, the accidents at level crossings take maximum lives every year after derailments. Besides, the statistics provided by the BR shows that train collisions have killed lesser people than the accidents at level crossings in last 10 years.
There are 35 level crossings between Kamalapur and Tongi. Of them, 14 are legal and the rest 11 have no approval.
Significantly, around 80 trains enter and depart the city everyday passing through the said 35 level crossings at Magbazar, Malibag, Mohakhali, Karwan Bazar and some other places. But most of the time, these level crossings remain unguarded.
About 50 per cent of the train accidents and deaths at level crossing happen due to the negligence of the jay-walking pedestrians as they ignore traffic signals, a study of traffic safety research and monitoring organizations said.
The study also said that the unapproved level crossings do not have overpasses and underpasses and those are slowing down the speed of trains and increasing operation costs.
Patrick Geddes made the first plan for Railways during the British rule, which was followed by the plan made by the Pakistan government in 1956 and finally the Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan in 1995.
Most of the level crossings, as per old planning, were constructed outside the city parameters, but they all lie in the heart of the city, at present, because of expansion of metropolis over the year, according to history.
