Feature: Bangladesh reduces traveler stress with advance ticket sales ahead of Eid festival

Long queues usually herald the start of Eid-related tickets sales to holiday makers in Bangladesh.

Though large numbers of people were seen at the counters of Central Kamalapur Railway Station in Dhaka on Wednesday morning to secure their ride, as with other occasions, there were not massive crowds, as booking railway tickets in Bangladesh has become easier.

Booking tickets through mobile phones is becoming a far more common way of securing a seat on a train and avoiding the queues at ticket booths, especially at this celebratory time of year.

Advance train ticket sales started in Bangladesh on Wednesday in a bid to ease the hassles of travelers of Eid-Ul-Fitr, one of the biggest festivals in the country.

A railway official said ticket booking is now almost hassle-free as the authorities have introduced a new service whereby customers can book train tickets by just sending an SMS text from their phone.

There is no no clamor like previous years because holiday makers are free from stress as they know very well that they have already booked a place, he said and added travelers just come to the station to collect their tickets and pay money.

Holiday makers said the measure by the government have greatly streamlined the process and made it a lot easier for them to travel to their respective destinations.

Sharmin Chowdhury has been studying and living in Dhaka with her sister's family.

She was elated to get tickets for her and her sister's family members who decided to go to their village home in the Gaibandha district, some 268 km north of the capital city Dhaka, to celebrate Eid.

"I'll go to my village home to celebrate Eid with all my family members. I am so happy to get a ticket. I was worried at one stage whether I will get ticket today as the officials' computer developed technical glitches while I was waiting in the queue. Thankfully it's okay and I have got the tickets."

Tania Parveen, a homemaker, said she is also very happy to get a ticket for her and her family members in such a short time.

"I will go to my father-in-law's home for Eid holidays. My kids are also excited as they are going to meet their grandfather and grandmother."

Some holiday makers who hadn't booked their tickets in advance queued up in their hundreds, hoping to buy tickets directly.

Some hopefuls had been queuing since Tuesday evening, they said.

Kamal Ahmed, a student, could not book in advance using a phone and like many others now has to queue for a ticket along with hundreds of others.

"I hope I will also get a ticket," he said, adding, "I got the information from newspapers that the advance tickets will be sold from today."

Holiday makers said the advance ticket sales system is good, but some suggested that the number of booths should be increased to reduce the waiting time for buying tickets.

Shitangshu Chakravarty, the manager of the station, said that they will be selling 18,000 tickets everyday for 33 destinations from as many as 12 counters during the time of Eid travel sales.

The sale will continue until June 26 and a commuter will be able to buy a maximum of four tickets at a time.

The railway authorities have cancelled leave of its officials and employees in order to provide smooth train services.

Bangladesh Railway officials said special trains will be introduced on different routes with additional coaches to meet the increased demand of homebound passengers ahead of the three-day Eid festival.

Eid-Ul-Fitr is a festival which is celebrated after the month of Ramadan. In Bangladesh, millions of people will go to their hometowns to celebrate the festival with their nearest and dearest.

Thousands of people also descended on the main bus terminals in Dhaka to buy advance Eid tickets, sales of which officially kicked off in the city on Monday morning, amid a huge demand from homebound passengers.

The Muslim majority country will celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, on or around July 6 based on the sighting of the new moon.

Far more law enforcement officers had visibly been deployed at the station to maintain security and order. Endit