The joy and festivities of Eid-ul-Fitr this week invariably turned tragic as road crashes claimed a number of lives across the country. According to a report in this daily, between March 31 and April 2, at least 41 people were killed in road crashes. It is suspected that the actual death toll could be higher. This is a sad state of affairs that has unfortunately become a common occurance in Bangladesh. But it cannot be normalised, and the authorities have to find a way to make roads safer during Eid holidays.

While all losses of life are devastating, some incidents leave a deeper mark due to their effects. Take, for example, the death of 26-year-old Roni Sikder, a constable under Gazipur Metropolitan Police who was on his way to his pregnant wife, who was scheduled for a surgery. An autorickshaw coming from the opposite side hit Roni's motorcycle, before he fell and died on the spot. He was buried in his family cemetery an hour after his son was born.

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Time to form a commission to ensure road safety

Perhaps the most tragic incident reported so far is the holiday trip to Cox's Bazar that turned catastrophic. Ten members of a family—who were travelling from Kushtia—died in a crash in the Jangalia-Chunati area on the Chattogram-Cox's Bazar highway when their microbus collided head-on with a bus. Among the survivors are a young girl who has lost both her parents. It is terrifying that this crash was one of three incidents that took place in the same spot within 48 hours, killing at least 15 people. Locals said the two-kilometre stretch on the highway is accident-prone due to the treacherous nature of the hilly and slippery road. In fact, at least 28 people have been killed in road crashes in this same spot since January this year. The authorities have taken some urgent measures to prevent further crashes, but what we want to know is why, when this road is already notorious for the high risk of road mishaps, preventive measures were not planned beforehand.

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Why are our roads still death traps?

This situation cannot continue to persist. Unfortunately, looking at how road safety has been handled over the years, making the roads safe has not been a priority for any government in this country. We can only hope that, in the new reality of Bangladesh where reforms are being proposed to rebuild the country, road safety will finally get the attention it desperately needs. Only then will we be spared from unnecessary and preventable deaths on our roads, and Eid holidays can be what they're supposed to be: an occasion only for merriment and reunions.