There are several days of holidays around Eid. Many people are traveling to the neighboring country India on this occasion. Due to this, the pressure of passengers at Benapole check post in Jessore has increased more than normal time. At the same time, many people are returning home from India through Benapole. However, passengers have raised questions about the quality of service at immigration in both countries.
Many people are going to India for medical and business purposes as well as sightseeing during Eid. Many people are also going to visit places of interest and spend Eid with their relatives. Many people are returning to Bangladesh through Benapole around Eid.
However, as in previous years, the passengers expressed disappointment and dissatisfaction for not getting the desired service at the check post. There are also allegations of harassment of brokers. At present, it takes about 5-6 hours per passenger to complete the immigration work on both sides at Benapole. Many passengers are also expressing their anger about this.
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The port authorities say that they are working to improve the quality of service. Passengers are asked to be careful to avoid harassment.
According to Benapole Immigration sources, a total of 30,480 passport holders traveled between the two countries in the four days from June 12 to June 15. Among them 20 thousand 137 people entered India. And 10 thousand 343 people returned from India.
About 2 million passport holders travel between India and Bangladesh through Benapole port every year. The Bangladesh government earns around Tk 100 crore annually from travel tax and the Indian government gets around Tk 150 crore from visa fees. In terms of travel, the amount of money has been increased year by year in both countries, but the quality of service is not increasing, the passengers complain.
They say that since the Padma Bridge has been opened, now all long-distance passenger buses are arriving at the port by 4 am instead of in the morning. However, even though the passengers arrived quickly, the port opened at 6:30 in the morning, so they had to wait in line on the road for a long time.
On the other hand, due to shortage of manpower on the Indian side, passengers have to suffer endlessly at immigration. Repeated BSF searches without providing passenger service at Petrapole Immigration are causing delays. Immigration is controlled by the Petrapol Port Authority. They have entrusted security to BSF.
Palash, a passenger in Benapole No-Man’s Land, told Jago News that he is going to celebrate Eid with his family in India. But here I am standing in line for three hours in intense heat and sun. The line is not decreasing. At the Petrapol check post, the officers are working slowly and the time is taking longer. I can’t say how long it will take.
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Another passenger named Golam Mostafa complained that it took only a few minutes to complete the process of Bangladesh immigration, but I have been standing in the sun for more than two hours at Petrapol Nomansland. I can’t say when I will enter Petrapole immigration.
Passport traveler Aarti Bala Saha told Jago News that the Bangladesh government is charging Tk 1055 as travel tax and the Indian embassies are charging Tk 850 for the visa fee. Even though the travel tax increased more than the visa, the service did not increase in travel. If port operations start by 5 am, the suffering will be reduced a lot.
Mihir Roy, a passport traveler, said that there is no service despite the increase in travel tax. It takes 5-6 hours to clear the immigration. There is harassment of brokers. All this is happening in front of the eyes of the security personnel.
Badal Chandra Roy, in-charge of Benapole land port armed battalion police, said that the passenger pressure has increased during Eid. Passengers have been asked not to hand over their passports to brokers to reduce suffering.
Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Benapole Checkpost Immigration Police. Azharul Islam told Jago Newk that 30,480 passengers traveled between the two countries in four days during the Eid-ul-Azhar holiday. In normal times, this number is around 4,500 per day. However, a record number of passengers have traveled this time. Most of whom are going to India for travel and medical treatment due to the long Eid holidays.
He also said that they are being urged to reduce the suffering of passengers at Petrapol Checkpost Immigration. It has been reported from there that there is no delay in immigration. The main reason for the delay is the BSF search.
Benapole Land Port Director (Traffic) Rezaul Karim told Jago News that various plans have been taken to improve the quality of passenger services. In the meantime, the land acquisition work is almost at the final stage. Indian authorities have also been requested to increase the service.
Md. Jamal Hussain/MKR/JIM
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