Chattogram Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) has rented a special train with 20 coaches to take part in a student rally scheduled to be held at the Central Shaheed Minar in Dhaka on Sunday.
The rally will be held as part of JCD's month-long programme marking the anniversary of the July-August mass uprising.
Railway sources said, as the JCD of Chattogram unit requested for the train, Bangladesh Railway approved it on Thursday at a cost of around Tk 10 lakh,
The special train will leave Chattogram station at 7:15am tomorrow and reached Dhaka around 1:15pm. It will return to Chattogram from Dhaka at 7:00pm the same evening, said railway officials.
The train has 1,126 seats. Railway officials from Dhaka and Chattogram divisions have been asked to manage the train service properly.
Tausia Ahmed, divisional commercial officer of Chattogram Railway, told the media that the train was approved by the Railway based on Chhatra Dal's request. Regular train services will not be affected.
Sabbir Ahmed, a joint convener of Chattogram Chhatra Dal, told reporters that about 1,500 leaders and activists from Chattogram city and nearby districts will travel together.
"We all wanted to go together, which would not be possible by bus," he said.
Earlier, on July 19, Jamaat-e-Islami also rented special trains for a rally at Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka. They hired the trains from Mymensingh, Sirajganj, Rajshahi, and Chattogram, costing them around Tk 32 lakh.
At that time, the Ministry of Railways said in a statement that renting special trains follows normal rules and does not disrupt regular services.
