It is cruising the long journey through the mighty Meghna and the Bay of Bengal with one of its two engines operating, BIWTC sources here said.

The ship plying the Barisal-Chittagong route had sailed from Chittagong on June 28 after seven months' repair and reached Barisal Wednesday night after remaining stranded on the Meghna for about 36 hours following engine failure.

The ship with 34 crew left for Chittagong for repair at Shirushush Dockyard, where the earlier repair work was done, sources said.

It can not be said when it will reach Chittagong as it will take about four times the normal period to cruise the distance with only one engine, its captain Mozammel Haque Haque said just before the sail. It will have to cross 90 kilometres on the turbulent Bay of Bengal.

MV Alauddin had gone out of order in December last.

Chief engineer of the ship Md Shajahan had said earlier that one of the engines went out of order when it had entered the Swandip Channel. After seven hours' repair, it resumed the journey. But after 20 hours', its right side propeller shaft broke when it reached near Chitalmari. It was stranded on the Meghna for about 24 hours.

Engineers from Barisal went there and made the engine operational on Wednesday (30 June) morning after 12 hours' repair and the ship somehow reached Barisal Wednesday night, 36 hours behind schedule.

Another BIWTC ship -- MV Abdul Motin --is now plying the route.