Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation

autonomous · verified (verified 2026-05-17)

Profile

Head: Md. Salim Ullah
Role: Chairman
Annual budget: —
Staff: —
Established: 1972
Legal basis: Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation Order, 1972 (President's Order No. 28 of 1972), which nationalised the East Pakistan Shipping Corporation and nine private shipping companies and vested their assets and liabilities in the newly constituted Corporation.

BIWTC is under intense public and regulatory scrutiny following the 26-fatality Daulatdia bus-plunge of March 25, 2026, which exposed absent safety barriers on pontoon infrastructure and alleged staff misconduct; probe recommendations to install railings and modernise ghats are pending ministry action while the corporation simultaneously expands its passenger fleet with three newly commissioned vessels and prepares reinforced Eid-ul-Adha ferry deployments on the Paturia-Daulatdia and other key crossing routes.

Recent activity

2026-02-17 other Three new BIWTC vessels -- MV Rupsa, MV Sugandha, and MV Madhumati -- were inaugurated at Sadarghat Launch Terminal by Shipping Minister Sheikh Rabiul Alam to ease Eid travel demand. MV Rupsa and MV Sugandha, built by New Western Marine Shipbuilders Limited at a combined cost of Tk 677 million, are each designed for 764 passengers with four VIP cabins, 27 first-class cabins, 15 second-class cabins, chair seating for 90, and deck space for 582; they operate on the Dhaka-Hatia route. MV Madhumati operates on the Dhaka-Betua route. ↗↗↗
2026-03-25 scandal A Souhardo Paribahan passenger bus carrying approximately 40 people plunged into the Padma River from pontoon No. 3 at Daulatdia ferry ghat (Rajbari) at around 5:15 pm after utility ferry Hasna Hena struck the pontoon with significant force, causing the driver to lose control. Twenty-six bodies were recovered; eight passengers remained missing. Investigation exposed BIWTC lapses: pontoon No. 3 had no railings or safety barriers, the structure was old and narrow, and some BIWTC staff were alleged to have offered cash to witnesses to suppress media coverage. ↗↗↗↗
2026-03-26 regulation Ministry of Shipping formed a six-member inter-agency probe committee -- convened by Additional Secretary Md. Muhidul Islam and including representatives from the Rajbari Deputy Commissioner's office, River Police, BIWTA, BIWTC, and the Department of Fire Service and Civil Defence -- to investigate the Daulatdia bus plunge and report within three working days. ↗↗
2026-04-01 audit District-level probe report on the Daulatdia bus sinking was formally submitted to District Administrator Sultana Akhter by committee head Additional District Magistrate Uchhen May. Key findings cited mechanical failure of the bus as a contributing factor; key recommendations included installing railings on all ferry ghat pontoons, developing proper approach roads, and modernising ghat infrastructure. The District Administrator confirmed the report would be forwarded to the Ministry of Shipping for legal action. ↗↗
2026-05-07 other Ferry services on the Paturia-Daulatdia route were suspended due to a nor'wester; services resumed on 9 May 2026 after approximately one hour of interruption. The route continued normal operations ahead of Eid-ul-Adha, with advance train and ferry planning for the holiday period already underway. ↗↗

Provenance & notes

BIWTC was constituted under President's Order No. 28 of 1972 by absorbing the East Pakistan Shipping Corporation and nine private shipping companies; the order vested all their assets and liabilities in the new corporation. Headquarters: Dhaka. Parent: Ministry of Shipping (not a separate Shipping Division -- unlike BBA under Bridges Division, BIWTC sits directly under the Ministry). Current Chairman Md. Salim Ullah took office on March 6, 2025 per New Age reporting; earlier chairmen in the post-August 2024 interim period included SM Ferdous Alam (Maritime Gateway) and an interim appointment under Adviser Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain's shipping portfolio. staff_count omitted: no primary-source figure found in accessible public documents. annual_budget_bdt omitted: BIWTC's budget is embedded in the Ministry of Shipping allocation and not publicly disaggregated in accessible Finance Division documents. The Daulatdia incident of March 25, 2026 (26 deaths) is the most significant recent governance event: multiple independent sources (Al Jazeera, TBS, Prothom Alo, Jago News 24) cross-confirm the date, death toll, and BIWTC infrastructure failures. Probe findings (pontoon railings absent, mechanical bus failure cited) sourced from Views Bangladesh and TBS with the April 1, 2026 submission date confirmed by the Rajbari District Administrator. Fleet expansion sourced from BSS, Financial Express, and bdnews24 with consistent Tk 677 million cost figure. Verification: 2+ primary sources cross-checked for all key claims.

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation

Profile

Recent activity

Sources