Disappointment at Kamalapur Station: Tickets elusive for those without smartphones, tech know-how

Rakib and Mizan arrived at Kamalapur Railway Station at 9:35am to buy standing tickets for the Mohanganj Express due at 1:35pm.

They hoped to secure the tickets to their home in Netrokona's Amtali union, where they would celebrate Eid with their families.

Online rail ticket sales, a boon to many, had proven to be a bane for the duo. But doing things the old-fashioned way would be their recourse, they thought. 

"We are stone masons. We don't have the money to buy a smartphone or have the know-hows of using the internet. We don't know much about online tickets," Rakid told The Business Standard. 

But even physical tickets proved elusive for them.

Having failed to secure tickets for the desired train, they even tried to get ones for Jamalpur-bound Jamalpur Express and Mymensingh-bound Agnibina Express. This was not to be either.

The Kamalapur station on Thursday had many like Rakib and Mizan. Disappointed faces dotted the station.

To prevent black marketing, the railway ministry decided to sell all train tickets online for the upcoming Eid journey. 

Although it saved many from the hassle of standing in queues for hours, those who could not afford a smartphone or know how to use the designated websites were left in a lurch.

Only those who could buy advanced tickets online on 10 April can travel by train today.

Although the authorities decided to sell 25% standing tickets of Shobhan class for every train due to massive pressure from passengers, the move still left hundreds behind who could not manage the tickets even after waiting in lines for more than three hours.

At 11am Thursday, around 1,500 people interested in buying standing tickets were seen at the station.

Rahmat Ullah from Ullapara said he had been waiting at the station since 7am to get two tickets for any train bound for Kurigram, Rangpur, Dinajpur or Rajshahi but in vain.

"As a last resort, I will try to get a ticket for Silk City to Rajshahi," Rahmat told this reporter.

Kamalapur Station Manager Masud Sarwar said the demand for standing tickets is about 2,000 against the allotment of more or less 200 tickets in each train.

Because of this, many had to return empty-handed.

Sonar Bangla more than 3hrs late 
The Chattogram-bound Sonar Bangla Express left Kamalapur station after more than three hours behind schedule. 

Although the train was scheduled to depart at 7am, it left at 10:15am.

The station manager said the departure was delayed due to technical issues.

Apart from this, he said all the day's trains (till 11 o'clock) left almost at the scheduled time.

On the fourth day of the Eid journey, around 50,000 people are expected to leave Dhaka by train from Kamalapur, said station manager Masud Sarwar.