Commuters suffer as buses stay off the road

People who depend on public vehicles for their daily commute have been hit hard, as bus owners and carriers began an indefinite nationwide strike Friday morning to protest rising fuel prices.

In Dhaka, not a single long-distance bus or freight vehicle has left a terminal since Friday morning.

Across the country, transit services have been hit since the morning hours, giving commuters a painful time.

Reports from the UNB correspondent in Natore: All public and freight vehicles have been kept off the roads in Natore.

Strikers have besieged all public transport terminals since morning, forcing people to use only CNG and battery-powered automatic rickshaws.

And the owners and drivers of these three-wheelers, according to many commuters, exploited the situation to defraud customers.

Our correspondent Cumilla reports: No buses have left the 26 terminals, including Shashangachha, Chawkbazar and Jangalaia in the city since morning.

Read also: Rise in fuel prices: carriers on indefinite strike from Friday

Job applicants who had to sit for entrance exams struggled to find alternative modes of transportation to reach their destinations.

Bangladesh Truck-Covered Van, Tank Truck and Prime Movers Owners and Workers Coordination Council official Md Rustom Ali announced on Thursday his decision to call an indefinite strike, following an emergency meeting.

Read also: BNP extends its support for the transport strike

Council leaders said the government raised the toll tax for the use of the Bangabandhu and Muktarpur bridges from 257% to 300% “illogically” on November 2, then raised fuel prices.

“Transport services have been on hold for a long time due to Covid over the past two years. When transport owners try to turn around their huge losses caused by the Covid shutdown, the decision to increase the toll on the bridge and fuel price has been announced, ”the council said in a statement.

On Wednesday, the government raised the prices of diesel and kerosene to Tk 80 from Tk 65 per liter at the retail level.

In a statement, the Ministry of Energy, Energy and Mineral Resources said that “Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) suffered a loss of Tk 20 crore per day as it sells diesel at Tk 13.01 less per liter and fuel oil at 6.21 Tk. per liter, lower than their imported prices “.

He said that oil prices have been readjusted against the background of rising oil prices on the international market.