From 18-22 trips a month to 7-8, and a lakh of profit down to 20,000-25,000

This truck owner in Meherpur had seven trucks standing idle from the start of the Covid pandemic. They used to average 18 to 22 trips a month and leave him more than a lakh taka of profit; by July 2020 they were getting seven or eight trips at most, leaving 20,000 to 25,000 taka after all costs - not enough to meet the instalments. On top of the slump came the queues at the Paturia-Daulatdia ferry ghat: passenger buses and emergency freight were given priority, so ordinary goods trucks waited three or four days or more for a half-hour crossing, while the driver's and helper's daily costs ran the whole time. Between 2,000 and 2,500 vehicles cross there daily, roughly half of them goods trucks. Another owner, in Satkhira, said parts and staff costs were rising while freight rates were not, and that owners would have to quit the trade if the ghat did not improve. Drivers lost income with the trips, since they are paid 10 per cent of each trip's fare.