20,749 unfit vehicles plying on Ctg roads
Monday, 28 September 2009
CHITTAGONG, Sep 27 (BSS): Over 20,749 unfit light and heavy vehicles have been plying on the roads in Chittagong city and the district without fitness certificates and depriving the government of a large amount of revenue.
Sources with Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) Chittagong office said out of the total 81,274 light and heavy licensed vehicles, 60,525 renewed their fitness paying taxes by July 30 last.
The rest 20,749 vehicles are running without fitness certificates dodging around one fourth of the revenue in the sector in the last fiscal year.
The BRTA earned Tk 811.50 million from 60,525 vehicles as fee and road tax in last fiscal year against Tk 611.40 million from 42,236 in the fiscal 2007-2009.
Drivers association source said untrained drivers and helpers causing traffic congestion and road accidents usually run the unfit vehicles. A good number of people are killed and injured in the road mishaps every year.
Hospital and police sources said over 323 accidents took place in Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari district in last fiscal leaving 321 people killed and 450 injured. Many accidents and causalities also remain unreported.
Nurul Alam, a transport driver in city's Panchlaish area, told the news agency that most of the unfit vehicles were running in the rural areas and the accidents caused by those usually were not disclosed.
Masud Alam, Assistant Director of BRTA, said they used to issue notices regularly on the owners of defaulting vehicles for renewal of the certificates and payments of road taxes.
He said they also conducted drives against the unfit vehicles with the help of Chittagong district administration, traffic department, metropolitan and district police.
Talking to the news agency Mainul Hossain, deputy commissioner (traffic), said the unfit vehicles were mostly responsible for traffic jams and road accidents in the district.
The drives against the unfit vehicles would be continued. He emphasised the need for combined efforts by the traffic department and BRTA to check the vehicles.
Sources with Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) Chittagong office said out of the total 81,274 light and heavy licensed vehicles, 60,525 renewed their fitness paying taxes by July 30 last.
The rest 20,749 vehicles are running without fitness certificates dodging around one fourth of the revenue in the sector in the last fiscal year.
The BRTA earned Tk 811.50 million from 60,525 vehicles as fee and road tax in last fiscal year against Tk 611.40 million from 42,236 in the fiscal 2007-2009.
Drivers association source said untrained drivers and helpers causing traffic congestion and road accidents usually run the unfit vehicles. A good number of people are killed and injured in the road mishaps every year.
Hospital and police sources said over 323 accidents took place in Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari district in last fiscal leaving 321 people killed and 450 injured. Many accidents and causalities also remain unreported.
Nurul Alam, a transport driver in city's Panchlaish area, told the news agency that most of the unfit vehicles were running in the rural areas and the accidents caused by those usually were not disclosed.
Masud Alam, Assistant Director of BRTA, said they used to issue notices regularly on the owners of defaulting vehicles for renewal of the certificates and payments of road taxes.
He said they also conducted drives against the unfit vehicles with the help of Chittagong district administration, traffic department, metropolitan and district police.
Talking to the news agency Mainul Hossain, deputy commissioner (traffic), said the unfit vehicles were mostly responsible for traffic jams and road accidents in the district.
The drives against the unfit vehicles would be continued. He emphasised the need for combined efforts by the traffic department and BRTA to check the vehicles.