Five people including cabinet secretary have been served with a legal notice seeking measures to build barbed-fence at rail crossing points across Bangladesh as well as appoint gatemen to ensure safety in rail tracks.
The notice came day after a train rammed into a car, carrying a wedding party, in Sirajganj's Ullapara Upazila killing as many as 10 people and injuring six others.
Along with the cabinet secretary, the notice was also served to four other people. They are -- secretaries of rail and local government ministries, director general of Bangladesh Railway Department and inspector general of police.
Supreme Court lawyer, Eklash Uddin Bhuiyan sent the notice by post on Tuesday (Jul 16).
"Legal action will be sought taken if they don't act within 72 hours upon receiving the notice," said Bhuiyan.
The notice said that accident takes places at rail crossings at the country's different places every day.
At present, there are 1,412 level (rail) crossings. Of witch, gatemen are posted at 466 crossings and 946 crossings remain unprotected without gatemen.
Rail crossings are still unsafe despite the Section 13 and 128 of the Rail Act 1890 that orders to take necessary measure to rail safety.
The Section 13 states necessary protective measures beside rail tracks while the Section 128 elaborates the punishment for any unlawful act on the railway.
According to the Accident Research Institute of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, as many as 244 people were killed and 228 were severely injured in 235 rail accidents in 2018, the notice states.