People suffer as parades clog streets

Traffic movement yesterday nearly came to a halt for several hours in many parts of the city as Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) leaders and activists occupied many roads while going to the Dhaka University campus on trucks and in processions, causing untold sufferings to people.

Thousands of people -- office-goers, businessmen and patients heading for their destinations -- remained stuck on the roads for hours. Finding no way, many abandoned their vehicles and started walking.

The congestion started in the morning when BCL leaders and activists, from different parts of the city, started for the Dhaka University campus on mini trucks to attend a programme marking the student organisation's 68th founding anniversary.

Things took a turn for the worse when a huge BCL procession, brought out from the DU around 12:00 noon, marched down to Matsya Bhaban to Kakrail to Awami League's central office at Bangabandhu Avenue.

People in Dhaka Medical College, Shahbagh, Bangladesh Secretariat, Gulistan, Dhaka University and the adjoining areas were the worst sufferers. All the roads in those areas were packed with vehicles.

Most of the busy thoroughfares in Motijhel, Dainik Bangla, National Press Club and Elephant Road areas were clogged too.

An employee of Nagar Bhaban, who had to get down from bus at Science Laboratory said there was congestion on the Mirpur Road too.

An employee of a private firm, wishing anonymity, said, “Seeing the gridlock, I started walking from Gulistan at 1:30pm and reached my office at Farmgate at 3:45pm.”

The congestion also took a heavy toll on businesspeople. Sigve Brekke, president of Telenor Group, which owns the majority shares of Grameenphone, was one of them.

He had a meeting with Tarana Halim, state minister for posts and telecommunications, at the Secretariat at 2:30pm. He started from the Radisson Blu on the airport road at 12:00pm. But he was stuck for three hours at Karwan Bazar.

After waiting for more than an hour, the state minister postponed the meeting for the day, according to ministry officials.

A former Inspector General of Police lost three and a half hours in much the same way. He was on his way to a programme.

“I suffered three kinds of loss -- working hours, energy and money. Why should I face such these losses for a political programme?” he told The Daily Star on condition of anonymity.

He could not attend the programme. Many government and police officials, like him, cancelled their programmes yesterday.

The gridlock on many roads continued even into the evening.

The BCL chalked out a five-day programme to mark its founding anniversary, which was inaugurated by Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader at the DU's Aparajeya Bangla.