Staff Reporter:
The Ministry of Shipping has formed a six-member high-level committee to probe into the incident in which a passenger bus fell into the Padma River while waiting at a pontoon to board a ferry at Daulatdia ghat in Goalanda upazila of Rajbari, resulting in multiple casualties.
The committee will determine the actual cause of the tragic incident and identify those responsible for it.
Additional Secretary of the ministry Md Muhidul Islam is the convener of the committee, and other members are – representatives from the Rajbari Deputy Commissioner’s Office, River Police, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC), and Department of Fire Service and Civil Defence, the ministry said in a press release on Thursday.
The committee has been tasked to submit its report within the next three working days.
Meanwhile, the death toll from the Padma River bus tragedy has risen to 26.
The accident occurred around 5:15pm on Wednesday when the Dhaka-bound bus “Showhardo” from Kumarkhali in Kushtia, while waiting at the pontoon to cross the river, plunged into the water after a ferry hit the pontoon.
The district administration has formed a five-member high-level committee, led by the additional district magistrate, to probe into the incident.
