Free rides for Sylhet Shahjalal university admission seekers
The university’s admission tests begin on Saturday
In a rare move, the Sylhet Chamber of Commerce, Sylhet Biking Community and volunteer organisation 'Booster' have announced they will provide free transportation to admission seekers at the Shahjalal University of Science and Technology on the test day.
The initiative will help maintain the traffic, said the Sylhet Metropolitan Police.
The Honours first year admission tests of the university will begin on Saturday. A total of 70,000 students will vie for a limited number of seats.
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Admission test has apparently become synonymous to chaos for the Sylhet dwellers. Nearly one lakh people, including applicants and their guardians, move to the city every year centring the tests.
The huge influx intensifies transportation and housing chaos, putting both the local people and the admission seekers in a fix. The city dwellers hope this year's unique move will ease sufferings of both the local people and the students.
On Friday afternoon, the city's chamber of commerce allocated 20 buses for the admission aspirants. Vice-Chancellor of the university Prof Farid Uddin Ahmed inaugurated the service.
On Thursday, Sylhet Biking Community and Booster announced free rides for the newcomers.
Additional Deputy Commissioner (Traffic) of the Sylhet Metropolitan Police Jotirmoy Sarker congratulated the voluntary initiative, saying police will remain alert to ensure smoother traffic on Saturday.
"We have talked to the Auto-Rickshaw Workers' Association leaders. They assured us that they will discourage their members about overcharging the applicants. The auto-rickshaw stands will have fare charts hanging."
Meanwhile, Sylhet Chamber of Commerce President Abu Taher Mohammad Shoeb said there will be banners at key points of the city. Their volunteers will also be present to help the admission seekers and their guardians.
On Thursday afternoon, the biking community and Booster members held a meeting, following which they said more than 100 bikers will be present at entry points of the city on Saturday morning.
Apart from free ride, bikers, in coordination with police, will keep their eyes open so that the auto-rickshaws could not overcharge the passengers.
