Govt mulls relocating battery-run rickshaws outside city areas: Home Minister

Home Affairs Minster Salahuddin Ahmed has said the government is considering relocating battery-powered rickshaws outside metropolitan areas and such a move would not create new unemployment while also helping improve traffic management.

Salahuddin Ahmed made the remarks at a press conference at the Secretariat on Tuesday.

Journalists asked whether it would be possible to ease traffic congestion in Dhaka while the government is trying to control traffic through artificial intelligence (AI) technology and, at the same time, hundreds of thousands of auto-rickshaws continue to operate in the capital.

In reply, the home minister said that thousands of battery-powered rickshaws had appeared on the roads across the country almost overnight. Considering unemployment and humanitarian concerns, it would be difficult to remove them from the streets overnight. He noted that attempts had also been made during the interim government's tenure to regulate auto-rickshaws.

Salahuddin Ahmed said that because thousands of people depend on the vehicles for their livelihoods and unemployment remains a major issue, making the drivers jobless overnight without rehabilitation would create further problems. Therefore, the government is trying to rehabilitate them in other ways outside metropolitan areas so that unemployment does not increase and traffic problems are also reduced.

Referring to what he described as a “revolutionary change” in addressing Dhaka’s traffic congestion through the use of AI technology, the Home Minister said traffic control using AI has already begun. People have started to benefit from automated traffic management.

He added that the technology is being developed jointly by experts from the Dhaka Metropolitan Police and the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). Visible improvements in Dhaka’s traffic system are expected within the next few months.

Salahuddin Ahmed also said that drives also tend to obey traffic signals at night. Public awareness has increased because traffic violation cases are now being filed automatically through a digital system.

The home minister also expressed optimism that the trial in the brutal child murder case in Pallabi, Dhaka, would be completed as quickly as possible. He said the judicial process is currently underway and it would not be appropriate to comment on a matter that is before the court.

However, the government is providing all necessary support, including ensuring the presence of the investigating officer and witnesses in court. He expressed hope that the trial would be concluded within a short period.

Regarding the upcoming director general-level meeting between the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and India’s Border Security Force (BSF), Salahuddin Ahmed said it is a routine process during which all unresolved issues, including border killings, illegal crossings and drug smuggling, will be discussed.