Metro Rail: Karwan Bazar, Shahbagh stations to open 31 Dec

The Karwan Bazar and Shahbagh stations of the metro rail will go into operation on 31 December.

MAN Siddique, managing director of the Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL), made the announcement at a press briefing at his office in the capital’s Eskaton area on Thursday.

With this, all the 16 stations along the Motijheel-Diabari mass rapid transit (MRT) line will be operational.

He disclosed that an overwhelming number of passengers, ranging from 130,000 to 156,000, are using the metro rail service every day.

The metro rail service was disrupted during the last New Year's celebration as lanterns flown to mark the celebration fell on the rail-track.

This time, the DMTCL requested the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) to take necessary steps to contain the repeat of the previous year’s disruption, he said.

The DMTCL specifically sought a ban on flying lanterns within a one-kilometer radius on both sides of the metro rail line, MAN Siddique added.