The Launch Owners' Association issued a stern warning Sunday against charging extra fares from homebound passengers for celebrating Eid-ul Fitr.
It said if any launch owner tries to realise extra money from the passengers during the Eid season, it will recommend to the government for cancelling route permits.
"We don't allow any unethical practice of charging extra fares from the passengers. If any launch owner tries to do that, then we will resist it and recommend to the government for cancelling the route permit," President of Bangladesh Inland Water Passenger Carriers Association Mahbub Uddin Ahmed told the FE on Sunday.
He denied plying of any unfit launch as he said, "A launch could not ply without fitness certificate from the department of shipping and also route permit from the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA)".
He also said fares of launches on different routes did not increase on the occasion of Eid-ul Fitr.
Mr Ahmed said launch owners could not increase the fare unilaterally as they solely depend on the government for fixation of fares routinely, keeping fuel prices and other factors into consideration.
He also said a government team comprising Coast Guard, river police and BIWTA is continuously monitoring the situation to ensure safe and hassle-free journey of holidaymakers.
To ensure smooth and safe journey for the passengers, he said, a large number of launches are now ready to set sail from Dhaka (Sadarghat) River Terminal.
Over 600 launches will ply on different river routes in the country at this time of the year.
Around 200 launches will leave Sadarghat for different destinations, especially the southern part of the country, according to the launch owners.
Earlier, the BIWTA decided to sell advanced launch tickets to avoid last-hour rush of the passengers.
To facilitate the journey of passengers, the BIWTA has opened a number of ticket counters for selling advanced tickets at Sadarghat river terminal.
But until Sunday (July 07), over 60 per cent tickets of different routes were sold out, sources in Dhaka River Port Terminal Authority told the FE.
Visiting Sadarghat terminal on the day, the FE correspondent found passengers queuing up to the counters for getting tickets for travel.
An official of BIWTA at Sadarghat told the FE that they expected most of the tickets would be sold out within the next few days.
The country has a total of 308 river routes. Of these, 38 are now operating from Sadarghat river terminal.
The deck fare on Dhaka-Barisal route is around Tk 300 while VIP cabin between Tk 4,000 and Tk 6,000 and single cabin from Tk 1,000 to Tk 2,000. The deck fare for Dhaka-Patuakhali route is Tk 300 while VIP cabin is between Tk 4,000 and Tk 5,000.
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