On Sunday (March 22), residents of Dhaka flocked to recreation centers across the capital on the 2nd day of Eid-ul-Fitr, with heavy crowds seen at the Bangladesh National Zoo, National Botanical Garden and Zia Udyan in Mirpur.
The areas were packed with visitors of all ages who came with family members. Traffic was also halted on the road in front of the zoo and botanical garden for about half a kilometer because of the crowd.
Zia Udyan also saw a steady flow of visitors throughout the day. As the afternoon progressed, the number of people kept rising.
Visitors said they had come mainly to spend time with family in their own way during the Eid holidays.
Fakhrul Alam, who visited the National Botanical Garden after 20 years, said he had come with family members after getting the Eid holiday.
“I last came to the Botanical Garden 20 years ago. At that time, the environment was not good. It was not possible to come with family, and we had to worry about security. Now I see the environment has improved a lot. Security also seems better. They have improved the toilet facilities. Earlier, they were not usable. Compared with that, it has improved a lot.”
Kamrul Hasan, an expatriate, came home to spend Eid in Bangladesh and visited Zia Udyan with his daughter. “We do not always get to spend Eid with the children, so this time I came. That is why I went out with my daughter for a walk. I like this park and it is also close to home, so I am spending some time here.”
Md Riyaz, who came from Noakhali to his sister’s house in Dhaka’s Badda area on Saturday night, visited Zia Udyan with his elder sister and nieces and nephews. He said: “I had been here once before. I came again today. On Eid day, the time usually goes by visiting relatives’ houses. So, after Eid I came here for a visit. I am not going to anyone’s house today.”
Abul Kalam, who came from Malibagh with his family, said: “This Eid we got a long holiday. I will be able to spend more time with my family. On Eid-ul-Fitr, either someone comes to our house or we go to someone else’s. So, the day after Eid, we came to the park with everyone. Later, if we feel like it, we will visit someone’s house in the evening. For now, this is our own time.”
The Bangladesh National Zoo also saw an overwhelming crowd. Visitors lined the road in front of the zoo for about half a kilometer.
Bangladesh National Zoo Director Rafiqul Islam Talukdar told that, Sunday brought the highest number of visitors in the zoo’s history. He said: “Yesterday, the number of visitors was lower than expected, but today the zoo has seen the highest number of visitors in its history. We had expected around 100,000 or close to that, but today 190,000 visitors came. That is nearly 200,000. Last year the highest number was 175,000.”
He said the zoo authorities had no difficulty handling the large crowd.
Rafiqul Islam added that multiple security measures had been taken for visitors. He said Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Tourist Police were working to ensure safety, while the zoo’s own security personnel, Ansar members and other staff were also on duty throughout the day.
He also said traffic police were working to control congestion, allowing visitors to come and go relatively smoothly and move around the zoo comfortably. No untoward incident had been reported so far.
