COX'S BAZAR, June 29: No essential repair work has been carried out for dilapidated Pekua Magnama Jetty in Cox's Bazar in the past 20 years, causing the commuters immeasurable distress.
More than 0.3 million residents of Kutubdia upazila regularly use the shabby jetty, risking their lives. A major accident can occur while crossing the jetty.
The islanders have been pressing for repair of the jetty for a long time, but the government has not taken any initiative.
Information found that the Water Development Board established the jetty in Magnama union of Pekua upazila in 1990 to cross Kutubdia in Cox's Bazar, the only island upazila in the south of the country.
Later, in 2004, an additional section was expanded and a long, narrow bridge was built 200 yards away. A safety fence of railings was set up around. For want of repair work, the safety fence of the railings has broken, the surrounding railings have become useless, and almost all the pillars of the jetty have split. Concretes of the pillars have moved off and the iron rods inside are coming out. In this situation, thousands of people who travel on the jetty are at risk of safety.
There is even a risk of the jetty collapsing at any time. Local people fear that if the jetty collapses, communication with Kutubdia will be cut off.
This important jetty has become dilapidated and unusable due to lack of repair or any kind of maintenance work for the past 20 years.
Locals say that although the government collects crores of taka in revenue every year by using this jetty, there is practically no initiative to renovate or repair the jetty. Islanders have been demanding the renovation of the jetty for a long time, but no work is being done.
Kutubdia resident Monir Ahmed said Magnama Ghat is an easy way to travel from Kutubdia to the rest of the country. But this poor condition of the ghat is making travel risky. The pillars of the platform are in very bad condition. There is a risk of it collapsing at any time. In addition, the railing has collapsed, making the movement of passengers unsafe. Therefore, people demand immediate repair of the jetty. Local resident Ehsan Ali said, "This jetty was built 20 years ago. Since then, there has been done no development or repair work on the jetty. Thousands of people travel through this jetty every day. Currently, the jetty is in a dilapidated condition. There is a possibility of an accident at any moment. I appeal to the government to quickly repair this jetty."
Local leader Nurul Islam said the jetty is currently in a dilapidated condition. Although the government has collected crores of taka in revenue from this jetty, the pillars of the jetty are breaking due to lack of maintenance work for a long time. The condition of the jetty is getting worse as the days go by. Nurul Islam, who is engaged in collecting toll at the Magnama Launch Ghat, said that the attention of the administration was drawn to the ghat several times for repair. But no progress has been made. He also said it is difficult to completely stop the movement of mini trucks due to the transportation of marine fish and daily necessities of Kutubdia.
Pekua Upazila Nirbahi Officer Mainul Hossain Chowdhury said the deputy commissioner of Cox's Bazar himself recently came and inspected the jetty area. The jetty is now in a risky condition. Therefore, movement of heavy vehicles will be stopped for the time being and there are plans to build a new jetty in the next fiscal year.
Cox's Bazar Additional Deputy Commissioner (Revenue) Md Nizam Uddin Ahmed said that safe movement of people will be ensured until the new jetty is built.
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