The Dhaka–Chittagong Highway Must Be Made Safe
There seems to be no end to the problems on the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway, known as the economic lifeline of the country. Almost every day, long traffic jams occur somewhere along this highway. Passengers suffer extreme hardship, while vehicles carrying export goods often fail to reach the port on time. On top of this, the activities of robbery gangs have become a source of terror. The fear of robbery increases after nightfall. As darkness descends, robbery gangs become active. Following a series of robberies over the past few days, this highway has now turned into a road of fear. From cargo vehicles to passenger buses, foreign nationals, returning expatriates, and even ambulances carrying patients and vehicles carrying wedding parties have fallen victim to robbery. At gunpoint, the robbers take away everything the victims possess. Robberies are also being committed by people posing as law-enforcement officers. The robbers do not stop after stealing money and belongings; they also beat passengers, stab them, and even shoot them. As a result, many people lose their lives. A report published yesterday in the daily Inqilab has highlighted this disturbing picture of the highway.
Newspapers regularly publish reports about the problems of the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway. Yet it cannot be said that the highway has become significantly better or safer. Potholes, roadside markets, illegal structures, and illegal parking at various points have made traffic congestion an everyday problem. When an accident occurs anywhere, the resulting traffic jam becomes unbearable. Added to this is the fear of robbery gangs lying in wait in the darkness. The fear of robbery on the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway has now spread to other highways as well. As a result, passengers have to travel at night in fear.
On average, more than 30,000 vehicles of various types– including buses, trucks, covered vans, long vehicles, private cars, and microbuses, travel along the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway every day. People from all over the country travel to the commercial capital Chittagong, the tourist city of Cox’s Bazar, as well as Rangamati, Bandarban, Khagrachhari, Teknaf, Saint Martin’s Island, and other destinations. Most of the country’s domestic and export goods are transported through this highway. If such an important highway becomes unsafe and passengers and goods have to travel under the fear of falling victim to robbers, there is hardly any need to explain how negatively this would affect the country’s economy.
The tourist season has already begun. A large majority of domestic and foreign tourists travel through the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway to the aforementioned districts and destinations. From Cox’s Bazar to Teknaf, Khagrachhari, Rangamati, Bandarban, and Saint Martin’s Island, hotels, motels, and resorts have already started preparing for the tourist season. This is their peak business season. If the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway continues to become a place of fear and anxiety, the number of tourists travelling through it will decrease. This will cause significant losses not only to the tourism industry but also to all kinds of commercial activities.
The fact that the law-enforcement agencies and highway police are not sufficiently active in different areas of the highway is evident from the fact that the highway has become unsafe. Needless to say, activists of the now-banned Awami League, who are allegedly involved in activities aimed at destabilizing the country, have become active. They are carrying out various activities to worsen the law-and-order situation and create fear among the public. They have allegedly embarked on a mission to increase public dissatisfaction with the government. In such circumstances, it would not be unusual for them to engage in terrorist activities in important areas and elsewhere in order to disrupt security. Carrying out robberies and other criminal activities on the extremely important and heavily used Dhaka–Chittagong Highway and making it unsafe could also be one of their objectives.
The question is: What are the law-enforcement agencies and highway police doing to ensure the security and smooth movement of people and vehicles on this extremely important highway? Why should passengers have to travel in fear and insecurity?
According to law-enforcement agencies, members of the robbery gangs active on the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway are involved in various professions. Some work part-time in garment factories, some run small businesses, and others drive auto-rickshaws. If the individuals involved in these robberies have already been identified, why are they not being arrested? Their job is precisely to arrest such criminals. Will the robberies stop if they simply sit idle?
The law-enforcement agencies are certainly aware of where robbery gangs are active and which areas of the highway experience the most robberies. If they conduct coordinated raids in those areas and arrest the criminals, stopping the robberies is certainly not impossible.
Law-enforcement agencies must therefore launch strict operations without delay. The safety of passengers and vehicles carrying goods must be ensured. At any cost, the movement of passengers and cargo vehicles on the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway must be made safe and free from fear and insecurity. The Ministry of Home Affairs must issue strict directives in this regard.
