Bangladesh: Life and Danger on the World's Most Crowded Roads

The Daily Grind in Dhaka

• 💡 Khokon, a rickshaw driver, navigates the chaotic streets of Dhaka, a city with 43,000 inhabitants per square kilometer, where life is cheap and survival requires constant vigilance.
• ⚠️ He works 7 days a week, 5 hours a day, earning just 3 euros, describing his job as "the worst job in the world" due to the extreme physical demands and unpredictable conditions.
• 🚦 Dhaka's traffic is a major challenge, with millions of vehicles causing jams that can last 4-6 hours, forcing drivers to constantly think one step ahead to avoid accidents and delays.

The Ijtema Pilgrimage and Travel Challenges

• 🕌 Bangladesh hosts Ijtema, the world's second-largest Muslim pilgrimage, attracting 6 million people, which severely strains the country's underdeveloped infrastructure.
• 🚂 Trains are a primary mode of transport for pilgrims, often becoming dangerously overcrowded, with passengers resorting to climbing on roofs and risking falls, especially near bridges.
• ⏳ Journeys are unpredictable, with trains frequently delayed or making unscheduled stops, and the old, colonial-era carriages offer little comfort and are not modernized.
• 💰 Many pilgrims are poor and save for months for the journey, facing difficulties in accessing food and navigating the dense crowds once they reach Dhaka.

Precarious Livelihoods and Extreme Conditions

• ⛏️ In the Goldsmiths' neighborhood, men like Ghazi prospect for gold dust in sewers, a dangerous and toxic job that yields meager earnings of around 11 euros for a night's work.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Families make immense sacrifices, with parents working in hazardous or low-paying jobs to afford their children's education, hoping for a better future.
• 🎣 In the Sundarbans, fishermen use trained otters to catch fish, a centuries-old practice now threatened by declining fish populations due to pollution and overpopulation.
• 🛶 The otter fishermen's catch is often insufficient to feed themselves, let alone their working animals, highlighting the pervasive poverty and struggle for survival.

Dangers of the Road and Rail

• ⚠️ Life expectancy for rickshaw drivers in Dhaka is often below 40 due to accidents, pollution, and physical strain.
• 💥 Train travel is fraught with peril, as railways are often used as roads, and the driver must navigate without clear visibility or effective braking systems to avoid tipping carriages.
• 🧒 Young boys, known as "train kings," risk their lives climbing on and between moving train carriages for a sense of freedom, aware of the severe consequences of a fall.
• 🚧 Even with police intervention, managing the crowds attempting to board trains is nearly impossible, leading to dangerous situations and opportunistic vendors charging for access.

Hopes for a Better Future

• 🏡 Khokon dreams of giving up his rickshaw driving to open a small shop, enabling his daughter to marry without the shame of her father's profession and to avoid his family living in slums.
• 🌟 Ghazi's wife expresses a deep desire for their children to receive an education, so they don't suffer the same "uncultured" and shameful existence they endure.
• 🎓 Children of fishermen and gold prospectors are seen as lucky if they receive an education, with aspirations of becoming businessmen and escaping the cycle of poverty.
• 🙏 The Ijtema pilgrimage, despite its hardships, offers spiritual fulfillment and a sense of purpose for millions of faithful in Bangladesh.