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Five traders from Jajira upazila of Shariatpur were among the 14 people killed in a head-on collision between a passenger bus and a sand-laden truck in Bonpara, Natore, on Tuesday morning.
The traders were travelling to Taherpur in Rajshahi to purchase agricultural produce for their businesses when the accident occurred, leaving their families, relatives and fellow traders in mourning.
The accident took place around dawn on the Natore-Pabna highway in the Sarkarpara area of Bonpara upazila. The five victims were residents of different areas of Jajira and had long been involved in trading agricultural produce and other commodities in local markets, particularly Kajirhat.
The deceased were identified as Jewel Madbar, son of Zahir Uddin Madbar of Ramkrishnapur Madbarkandi; Salal Molla, son of Jahan Uddin Molla of Dubisaiabar Mollahkandi; Sohag Shikder, son of Yunus Shikder of Dubisaiabar Kajirhat; Samad Fakir, a grocery trader from Kajirhat; and Shahin Bepari, a turmeric trader from Kathuria in Palerchar Union.
According to police and local sources, the five had planned to buy corn, onions, garlic, coriander and other agricultural products in Taherpur and sell them in markets in Jajira.
Jewel Madbar ran a grocery business alongside his trade in rods and cement in Kajirhat. Samad Fakir was also involved in the grocery trade, while Shahin Bepari dealt in turmeric. Salal Molla and Sohag Shikder traded agricultural produce and other commodities.
Their deaths have caused grief among local businesspeople who had known them for years.
Didar Sardar, a trader from Kajirhat, said he knew all five through business and had maintained good relations with them. He described news of their deaths as deeply distressing.
According to eyewitnesses and local sources, the passenger bus collided head-on with the sand-laden truck travelling from the opposite direction. The front sections of both vehicles were badly mangled. Fourteen people were reported killed, while several others were injured.
Local residents and rescue workers helped retrieve the injured, who were taken to different hospitals.
Jajira Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Saleh Ahmed said he had learned about the accident through social media but had yet to receive official information from the relevant authorities in Natore or the victims’ families.
He said police would take the necessary legal steps once they received information about bringing the bodies back to Jajira.
