The patients, admission-seekers and city dwellers experienced immense sufferings on Saturday following shortage of public transports due to the 20th National Council of Awami League.
The two-day AL Council is being held at the Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka.
No vehicle was allowed to use Manik Mia Avenue-Farmgate, Russel Square-Panthapath, Katabon-Shahbagh, Doel Chottor-TSC, Doel Chottor-High Court, Kadam Foara-Matsya Bhaban, and Matsya Bhaban-Shahbagh routes.
Most of the roads were seen empty of public transportation forcing the commuters to walk for long distance in the metropolitan city.
The number of buses was thin in different roads as the owners have ordered the drivers and conductors to keep their vehicles in the garage to avoid any hassle.
Salman Ahmed, a resident of Farmgate area, told The New Nation that he never experienced such a problem as he found no vehicle to go to Chandkharpool.
Sumi Akhter, a resident of Panthapath, said, “I used Farmgate-Shahbagh route for going to National Press Club. I went to Shahbagh just walking, but at Shahbagh intersection police intercepted me and asked to use another road. The route was closed for vehicle not walking the people. But I had nothing to say.”
The patients who came to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) and Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders (BIRDEM) were in misery for the same reason.
Many patients and their attendants were seen standing up in front of the hospitals and waiting for vehicles for hours.
Nasima Begum came to DMCH to get treatment for her one year old son as he suffers from pneumonia. She met the doctors and waited for vehicle for one and a half hours.
“I have come from Jurain in the morning by a bus at Gulistan. I came to the hospital by a rickshaw. But now I am in problem because I found no rickshaw for going home,” she said.
Meanwhile, students from different parts of the country who came to attend the admission test of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) suffered in huge traffic. Some 9,157 students sat for the admission test that started at 9:00am on Saturday on the campus. “We started from Narayanganj around 6:00 am and reached the venue around 8:30am because of the traffic jam that started all the way from Gulistan,” Probir Chandra Barman, an applicant who came from Narayanganj said.
“After reaching in front of Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, we found the road was blocked. So, we had to enter the campus through Palashi,” Barman, a student of Haji Misir Ali College, added.
Meanwhile, BUET authorities sent text messages to the applicants requesting them to come earlier anticipating traffic on the roads. Many students had to walk to the examination hall due to the shortage of the vehicles.
One Misbahul Hakim, who came from Rangpur, said he stayed with a student from his native village at Ahsanullah Hall of Dhaka University.
“Like me, many others stayed at different halls inside the Dhaka University campus,” he said.
