Rail track screws and base plates have been stolen in many places on the Habiganj-Ballah rail section as it had long been lying abandoned — FE Photo SYLHET, Nov 13: The railway authorities could not resume train services on the much-desired Habiganj-Ballah section as the rail tracks remains abandoned for long years. Valuables from the unused tracks had also been taken away from places.
A section of railway employees even had erected pucca structures for living on the railway lands and rented those houses to outsiders illegally.
Train service on the 36-km Habiganj-Ballah rail route was launched during the British rule with eight railway stations, built in 1928. These are Habiganj bazaar, Habiganj Court, Shaistaganj Junction, Shakir Mohammad, Chunarughat, Amu Road, AsamPara and Ballah, which is close to the Habiganj-Tripura frontier.
Among them, Chunarughat, Amu Road and Asampara stations were mostly used for transporting tea, produced by 22 tea estates around those. The raw materials and other items of the tea gardens and their staff and labourers as well as of the different tools of tea processing factories alongside, fertilizer and pesticides etc were transported through these stations.
After the War of Liberation the importance of the service went up and the authority established new stations named Sutang and Barokuta. Alongside coal-driven engines, the authority added diesel-run engines on the section at that time.
However, for its close location on the border, the service was used by the smugglers during the post-liberation period. At a stage, the section faced challenges of loss as common people reduced using the trains mainly due to the smugglers. The number of ticket-less passengers rose sharply and the track became a losing concern.
At one stage the authority stopped renovation of the rail section putting the whole track at risk. The per hour speed of trains had to be reduced to 15 km only due to the worn-out condition of tracks, which resulted in shutting down the service as well during HM Ershad regime, said some officials.
Although the authority had to resume the service in a week after the locals' agitation, again it went suspended during the BNP rule after 1991.
However, the authority decided resuming the service again through private management after the different organisations' agitation. After a short period, the shut down came for third time again.
The Awami League government after 2008 assured of reopening the service, but things remained shut till date. Due to the increased mobility, the AL leaders again assured of meeting the long-felt demand ahead of the 11th parliament. But things remained as before.
An official however, hinted the authorities were contemplating for resuming the service, as the locals had demanded.
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