The railway stations of Kalihati, Jokerchor, Solla, and Hatia in Tangail, between Dhaka and the Bangabandhu Highway Bridge, are in a seriously bad state. Bamboo or banana plants are securing the railtrack sleepers or ties as they are variously known, instead of metal bolts.
According to sources at the railway department, the stretch of highway between Tangail and Sirajganj, alongside which the rail lines are, has 132 bridges.
Of them the Pungli Rail Bridge for example, does not have its main sleeper. Locals fear another major train accident like the one in August, 2007.
Two of the locals in the area, Munnaf Ali and Mannan Mia, said: "In the last few years, nine bogies derailed in various upazilas of Tangail. If the bogies had fallen in the river, it would have been worse."
Dhaka-Bangabandhu Highway Bridge Station Master, Abdul Mannan, told Dhaka Tribune that he was unaware of these critical conditions .
“Although, there is no hard and fast rule that bamboo cannot be used in place of iron bolts, I will take necessary steps against the practice,” he said.
Joydebpur Bangladesh Railway Assistant Engineer Nazib Kaiser said: "Often these bolts are stolen and we do not have enough bolts in stock. Under these circumstances, as a stop gap emergency measure, bamboo can be used to secure the rail tracks and sleepers, instead of metal sleeper bolts."