PLEDGES, made just before two months when holidaymakers were rushing to their homes for Eid-ul-Fitr, to reduce highways tailbacks and to make dilapidated roads better are yet to be accomplished though the festive-makers are already heading towards home to mark another Eid. And the big promises made now will take another course of months or years before being forgotten by the people, encouraging the Communications Minister to promulgate mountains of promise. The highways scenario this time is not unusual to the home-goers as they take the sufferings usual for them. Besides, extortion from cattle-carrying trucks by politically-empowered goons, plying unfit buses on highways, dilapidated roads, and inefficiently traffic management contribute to make the gridlock long and sustainable.Several newspapers highlighted the sufferings of home-goers on buses and other vehicles stranded on the 65-kilometre tailback on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway and 40-kilometre tailback on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway in the last two days. Holidaymakers are seen in profound distress stranded in the tailback where several thousand vehicles were seen in queue for the rush to reach home ahead of Eid. We expressed our concern over dilapidated roads, the yet to be completed four-lane project works of Dhaka-Chittagong and Dhaka-Mymensingh highways over the years, but the Ministry concerned found these abnormalities ,that spell miseries for the festive-makers of no consequence.As the monsoon has just concluded, several potholes developed on roads and highways and in some places the pitched-roads turned into muddy lanes which forced vehicles to ply slowly or be left stranded. Meanwhile, roadside cattle haats, kitchen markets and bazaars also contribute to the narrowing of the highways in different places. Faulty drainage system overflows sewerage on roads, dumping garbage on highways, and digging roads for installing utility services also serve to constrain traffic flow. Stoppages run by police and local goons to extort passengers and cattle-carrying trucks hinder the traffic on highways. The above mentioned causes are known to all, but who takes the responsibility to fix the problems. Certainly, it is duty of Communication and Home Ministries, but Communication Minister Obaidul Quader is seen busy defending himself and his government without anything showing for it. The government appears everything other than good at improving the lot of the people.
