A sense of melancholy has returned to the faces of business owners at the Sadarghat terminal, as they returned to the capital for the first working day, following the Eid-ul-Fitr holidays.
On Sunday, a visit to the Sadarghat area revealed barely a trace of activity, reports Bangla Tribune.
Launches on various routes are departing and arriving as per schedule, but there is a noticeable lack of energy among the launch staff as well.
According to those involved, ever since uninterrupted road connectivity was established between Dhaka and the southern regions, the number of river passengers at Sadarghat has seen a steady decline.
Now, the port only experiences significant pressure during the two days before Eid and the couple of days after the Eid holidays. At other times, there is hardly any noticeable passenger traffic, they said.
As a result, the number of launches has decreased, and the impact is being felt by small-scale businesses operating in and around the terminal area, they added.
Retailers around the ghat say their business heavily depends on the footfall of Sadarghat’s passengers.
During the days surrounding Eid, their sales peak. But with Eid now over, the passenger shortage is once again hurting their sales, the retailers said.
Sagar, a fruit vendor on the pontoon, said: “There are no passengers today. Eid is over, and so is our business. In the two days before Eid, I sold nearly one and a half to two maunds of fruit per day. I even had good sales yesterday (Saturday). But today, there are no passengers—I've barely sold half a maund.”
Reminiscing about Eid seasons before the Padma Bridge was built, he said: “Back then, I used to sell six to seven maunds of fruit in a day during Eid. Now there are no passengers, so sales have dropped. Besides, the police no longer allow us to sit at the ghat as freely as before.”
Touhid Hasan, who owns a clothing shop just outside the terminal, said: “Our business depends on the passengers at the ghat. There were passengers these last few days, and we made good sales. Before the bridge was built, our business used to thrive. Many have quit their businesses here. Now, it’s only during Eid that our sales are good.”
According to BIWTA sources, up until 8pm on Sunday, a total of 100 launches had docked at the pontoons from various routes, and 70 had departed.
Mubarak Hossain, joint director of the Dhaka River Port at BIWTA, said: “With the end of the public holiday, the rush of Eid travel has subsided. This morning, there was some passenger pressure on the Chandpur and Ilisha routes only. Apart from that, launches are operating as usual.”
