Six ships were approved to operate, but only three sails today
After months of restrictions, the tourist season in St Martin's Island began today with three cruise ships carrying 1,174 passengers from Cox's Bazar.
The vessels left the Nuniachhara BIWTA jetty between 7:00am and 8:00am.
Tourists were excited as they boarded the ships after strict checks by the district administration, the environment department, and the Tourist Police to ensure they followed the government's 12-point guideline.
Tourists gathering at the Jetty, Photo: Star
Hossainul Islam Bahadur, general secretary of the Sea Cruise Owners Association of Bangladesh, said six ships were approved to operate, but only three sailed today. He said the government had allowed up to 2,000 tourists per day, but only 1,174 travelled due to ongoing school examinations and other reasons.
Photo: Star
He added that their ships Karnaphuli and Baro Auliya received clearance to carry about 950 passengers, and both sailed at full capacity, while the other vessels could not operate due to a lack of passengers.
The remaining approved ships would begin operating gradually and that seats on their vessels from December 5 to 26 were already sold out. Bahadur said the ships would reach St Martin's between 12:00pm and 1:00pm, Bahadur further said.
Local resort operator Mohammad Sohel said preparations had been made to welcome the tourists.
During a visit to the jetty, Cox's Bazar Deputy Commissioner Abdul Mannan said, "From today, tourists will be allowed to stay overnight in St Martin's. Tickets and travel passes must be purchased online, and QR codes will be scanned at entry points to ensure the daily limit is not exceeded."
Md Zamir Uddin, director of the Department of Environment's Cox's Bazar office, said the ships would be closely monitored and that no more than 2,000 tourists would be allowed per day. Separate checkpoints have been set up at the Nuniachhara and St Martin's jetties.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change issued a circular on October 22 outlining 12 guidelines to protect the island's ecosystem. Tourism had been suspended since February 1 this year, but under the new decision, travel is allowed from November to January, with a maximum of 2,000 tourists per day, provided the guidelines are followed. Overnight stays are permitted only in December and January.
The guidelines prohibit unapproved vessels, tickets without QR codes, beach lighting at night, loud music, parties, entry into keya forests, collection or sale of keya fruit, and any harm to marine turtles, birds, corals, crabs, or shells. Motorised vehicles on the beach are also banned. Tourists are discouraged from carrying polythene and single-use plastics and are advised to use reusable water flasks.
Meanwhile, Cox's Bazar Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Nilufa Yasmin said Keari Sinbad was fined Tk 50,000 for selling tickets without the mandatory government-approved travel pass.
Abdullah Al Said, a director of Keari Group, said the passengers had arrived at the jetty at the last moment with return tickets but without onward tickets. He added that issuing QR-coded passes was not possible because the server was down at 7:00am, and said, "We were trying to help them but ended up being penalised."
