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Calcutta-Dhaka bus service mired in disputes

Arup Chanda in Calcutta

A West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation bus left Calcutta today for a dry-run to Dhaka along with the Bangladeshi bus which arrived in the city yesterday.

Despite several rounds of discussion between Bangladeshi and West Bengal officials, the Calcutta-Dhaka bus service remains trapped in red tape and indecision and none is sure when regular services will begin.

In the case of the more high-profile Delhi-Lahore bus service, with the prime ministers of India and Pakistan taking active interest, such hurdles were quickly bypassed. But in the case of the Calcutta-Dhaka service, doubts persist about how the bottlenecks will be cleared, and when.

The inaugural run has already been postponed twice. The new dates are May 10, Rabindranath Tagore's birthday, or May 24, Kazi Nazrul Islam's birthday. The dry runs, carrying officials, are expected to be complete this week.

The main difference of opinion between the two sides is on the fare. Bangladesh wants to charge $20 for a return ticket; India has expressed its inability to run the service profitably at a high standard of comfort and efficiency for less than $40 (Rs850) one-way.

The Indians point to the large number of incidental expenses involved in running the service. The fare must include, besides the cost of breakfast, lunch and snacks, the cost of insurance, toll charges (to be paid at three points), two ferry crossings (each costs a bus Rs1,100) and boarding and lodging for the crew.

Besides, depots in Dhaka and Calcutta will have to maintain a large inventory of spares for repairs.

Then there is the cost of having two armed Bangladeshi policemen on board each bus. The Indian side has insisted on security -- especially because 325 kilometres of the 410km route lie in Bangladesh, some in insurgency-affected areas.

The recent bomb attack at a musical function in Jessore, where Indian artistes were present, has only heightened the security concerns.

Finally, India wants to pattern its fare structure on the lines of the 480km Delhi-Lahore route, a one-way ticket for which costs Rs800.

But Bangladesh argues that since bus operators in that country charge just 300taka (Indian Rs225) for a trip to Dhaka from Petropole on the border, demanding an extra 700taka for another 85km to Calcutta will be unreasonable.

Dhaka has asked one of the city's leading private bus operators to run the service. The Indian operations will be carried out by the government-owned WBSTC.

Another point of dispute, this time within Bangladesh, is Dhaka's insistence that the operator provide hefty bank guarantees for the buses. The government fears the operators might otherwise feel tempted to sell the brand-new Japanese vehicles to Indians.

Another hurdle is the Indian police's reluctance to allow high-frequency VHF sets on the buses. WBSTC insists the sets are a must for the passengers' security.

The bus from Dhaka, which arrived in Calcutta yesterday, created a lot of excitement among people on both sides of the border.

A commemorative music cassette containing songs of Tagore, Islam and Jibanananda Das sung by Indrani Sen, Nachiketa and other well-known singers was released yesterday. The numbers deal exclusively with Bengal's glory and its secular approach to life. The purpose is to strengthen the emotional bonds across the international border.

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