Metro Rail Resumes Motijheel–Shahbagh Route After Seven Hours
Metro rail service between Shahbagh and Motijheel resumed at 7:15 pm on Sunday, October 26, following a seven-hour suspension caused by a tragic incident in Farmgate, Dhaka, where a bearing pad fell from a metro rail pillar, killing a pedestrian.
The verified Facebook page of Dhaka Metro Rail reported that services had been halted from 12:30 pm. Partial service between Agargaon and Uttara resumed around 3 pm, and the full stretch from Shahbagh to Motijheel reopened in the evening.
In response to the incident, the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges formed a five-member investigation committee, led by Secretary of the Bridges Division Mohammad Abdur Rauf. “The committee will review technical and engineering aspects and recommend measures to prevent such accidents in the future, as well as identify those responsible,” said the Ministry. Experts from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) and the Military Institute of Science and Technology (MIST) have been included in the committee. Other members include BUET Mechanical Engineering Professor Dr. A B M Towfiq Hasan, MIST Civil Engineering Associate Professor Lieutenant Colonel Md. Zahidul Islam, and DMTCL Line-5 Project Director Brigadier General (Retd.) Md. Abdul Wahab, with Undersecretary Asfiya Sultana serving as member secretary. The committee has been instructed to submit its report within two weeks.
Following the accident, Road and Railway Adviser Fawzul Kabir Khan and senior officials from the Ministry and DMTCL inspected the site. Adviser Khan also announced an initial compensation of BDT 500,000 to the family of the deceased, Abul Kalam. He added that if any family member is employable, they will be offered a job at Metro Rail.
The incident occurred around 12:30 pm near the Bangladesh Agricultural Institute adjacent to Farmgate Metro Station, when a 50 kg bearing pad fell on 27-year-old Abul Kalam from Ishorpati village, Narayanganj’s Naria Upazila, crushing him instantly. His passport had been valid until 2033. Tragically, the accident came a day after a Facebook post he shared stating, “I wish I could escape life for now.” A friend, Tareq Aziz, shared the post, highlighting its grim significance.
Local residents emphasized the need for stricter safety and maintenance of such components to prevent future accidents. The fallen bearing pad, or vibration control spring, is designed to absorb line vibrations during train movement and maintain structural stability. Monthly bolt inspections are mandated, and preliminary findings suggest that prolonged vibrations may have loosened the spring, leading to the fatal incident.
Abul Kalam, a Jagannath University graduate, had worked abroad in Malaysia in 2012 to support his family. Returning in 2018, he married Irin Akter and lived in Narayanganj with his wife and two children: Abdullah, 5, and Suraiya Akter, 3. He regularly commuted through Farmgate for his travel agency business.
The tragedy has sparked nationwide concern over Metro Rail safety and maintenance standards.
