THE derailment of the power car of a passenger train on the Dhaka–Jamalpur route in Mymensingh on June 10, followed by the derailment of a relief train sent for recovery on the same track, exposes a disturbing level of vulnerability in railway infrastructure. The fact that both incidents occurred within hours on the same section, disrupting train communications for around three hours, underscores not merely an operational failure but a deep structural weakness. In April, train communication between Sylhet and the rest of the country was suspended after a train carrying fuel derailed at the Mantala station of Madhabpur in Habiganj. In March, at least 66 passengers were injured in the derailment of the Nilsagar Express at Bagbaria in Bogura. While authorities have suggested that the investigation will determine the cause of the recent derailment, the recurrence of such incidents on ageing tracks draws attention to the condition of the railway network. Passengers are, thus, left to travel on sections officially acknowledged as vulnerable, awaiting long-promised repairs that have yet to materialise.
The railway sector is burdened with longstanding neglect and systemic underinvestment. Official acknowledgements have pointed to old sleepers, deteriorating tracks and the need for urgent rehabilitation across key routes, including the Dhaka–Tangail corridor, which branches into the affected Dhaka–Jamalpur line and is reportedly in a poor condition. Despite multiple rehabilitation projects now being under way, the pace of renewal remains slow relative to the rate of deterioration. A 2019 study jointly presented by Paribesh Banchao Andolan and the Work for Better Bangladesh Trust found that nearly 75 per cent of derailments were linked to poor track condition, with a similar proportion of lines falling below acceptable standards because of insufficient maintenance, inadequate machinery, staff shortage and a lack of proper ballast stones. The findings highlight a pattern of institutional neglect rather than isolated technical faults. Compounding the problem is the absence of a comprehensive, updated assessment of vulnerable points across the network. Without a clear mapping of risk-prone sections, maintenance becomes reactive rather than preventive, responding to accidents rather than anticipating them.
The repeated derailments should serve as a wake-up call for the government to prioritise railway modernisation as a core infrastructure agenda. It should, therefore, take steps for an urgent nationwide safety audit to identify and publicly document all high-risk railway segments. The rehabilitation should shift from piecemeal repairs to comprehensive track renewal, supported by modern equipment and adequate funding. The Bangladesh Railway should invest in predictive maintenance systems, including digital monitoring of track conditions, to reduce dependence on crisis-driven repairs. Equally important is to strengthen institutional capacity through skilled human resources, transparent procurement and accountability mechanisms that ensure the timely execution of projects.
