Transport anarchy
Put a stop to it
Anarchy now rules the city's passenger service, especially of buses and minibuses in the capital. Operators of the public transports are still found to be charging fares in excess of those fixed by the authorities. Small wonder sporadic quarrels and scuffles between ticket collectors and commuters, drivers fleeing buses when challenged by mobile courts, stranded transports on the streets and so on have become a day-to-day scene on the city roads. All this is happening in spite of HC directives to the communications secretary and the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and others concerned to prevent collection of additional fares by bus operators. Five more mobile courts have joined the drive in addition to two others to discipline the recalcitrant bus operators, but with little result.
The bus operators seem to be indifferent to public protests, media coverage on instances of their being caught in the act, government's directive to follow the prescribed fare chart, let alone HC directives. The mobile courts in operation are undoubtedly facing a huge challenge to tame bus operators.
But what is most baffling is where are those unruly bus operators deriving their arrogance from?
The authorities should also give a deeper look at this aspect of the issue and try to delve deeper into the problem. The bus owners, who are the real bosses of the bus drivers and conductors, need also to be brought under the fold of the law.
In its six-point directives, the HC has asked the communications and home secretaries to constitute a seven-member committee to monitor how far its orders are being implemented on the ground. Similarly, it also directed the police authorities concerned to form vigilance teams to enforce government orders.
We think whatever measures the government takes, those should not be one-shot ones. The drives launched by mobile courts and other actions taken should be sustained to produce result. The government may also think of forming a high-powered task force entrusted with the job of looking into all aspects of the fare issue and suggest ways and means to ensure civic order and security.
Land grabbing menace
Deterrent punishment called for
The government decision to launch a drive to recover about 1000 acres of khas lands of Bhawal forest illegally occupied by industrialists and other individuals in the past is a move in the right direction.
The land ministry identified 93 usurpers of forest lands worth around Taka 1000 crore during the preceding government. The decision to recover the land remained suspended for sometime due to unknown reasons. The grabbers submitted fake documents and false statements to validate their action.
The parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Land will meet this week to discuss the progress on implementation of its recommendations.
Not only are government lands in Bhawal forest under illegal occupation, similar cases of usurpation of all kinds of government lands have also been going on across the country.
Apart from forest lands, plain and hilly lands are also poached upon by the opportunists. The foreshores of rivers and canals are the latest targets, causing immense damage to the rivers of the country. Grabbing of hill lands in Chittagong led to mudslides and loss of lives.
There seems to be a strong nexus at work between vested interest and officials to flout government orders. For its part, the government has not been successful in dealing with them effectively. Half hearted measures have run out of steam; the concerned authorities will have to be tough to prevent the grabbers from continuing their illegal activities and recover not only the particular forest land, but all kinds of land that they have already usurped.
While giving kudos to the land ministry for its decision to recover lost lands, we urge the government to take legal action against the grabbers so as to deter those who are waiting in the wings to follow in their footsteps should they slip though the loopholes of law.
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