Blockade day 3: No long-haul buses leave Gabtoli terminal
On Thursday, the third and last day of the BNP-Jamaat nationwide blockade, no long-haul buses are operating from the Gabtoli bus terminal.
Visiting 10 counters in the terminal between 10am and 11:20am it was seen that no buses left the terminal today.
Mohammad Rahat, counter manager of Hanif Enterprises, said "There are no passengers, how will I start the trip? Many people are contacting me by phone for tomorrow's ticket."
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Shyamoli NR Paribahan vehicles travel to Bogura, Rajshahi, Barishal, and other parts of the country.
Billal Hossain, ticket master of the counter said, "I have sold five tickets in advance for tomorrow. The bus will depart early tomorrow morning. If we get passengers, buses will be operated even after 10pm."
For traveling to Bogura, Ayesha Akhtar has purchased tickets from Gabtoli's "Shyamoli N.R. Paribahan" counter. She mentioned that she resides in Mohammadpur, the capital, with her family. Since she will be traveling to her village in Bogura with her young children, she has already bought the tickets in advance.
They had planned to go two days ago, but due to the bus not departing, they couldn't make the journey.
On the other hand, due to the absence of buses and the urgent need for transportation, many travelers are facing difficulties. Some are opting for alternative means of transportation to reach their destinations.
In the meantime, only a few buses of Padma Paribahan and Selfie Paribahan are leaving the terminal to travel up to the river, to Manikganj and Aricha ghat.
Arafat, the supervisor of Selfie Paribahan, mentioned that they are charging Tk180 to travel to Aricha Ghat. They have started running buses in the morning, and around 10 buses have already left.
Rajab Ali, who recently completed a 40-day religious mission with Tabligh Jamaat in Feni, is waiting at Gabtoli to depart for Jhenaidah with four companions at 10 AM. He said, "After coming here at 10am we hear that the buses won't be departing. We came because we heard on the news that the buses will operate."
"Now we've learned that we might have to wait until night to catch a bus. We have to spend the whole day at the counter. We hope for a peaceful resolution and that the buses start running," he added.
Ima Begum arrived at Gabtoli Bus Terminal with the intention of traveling to Jhenaidah after taking her son to Dhaka Central Hospital. She said, "There are no buses to Jhenaidah available, now I will have to wait with my ill son."
She also mentioned that they had been waiting for an hour at the bus stand.
