Bangladesh embassy warns its citizens about crossing roads in Oman

Muscat: People should not risk their lives while crossing roads, a senior official of the Bangladesh Embassy in Muscat has cautioned its citizens.
The official’s plea came as the Bangladesh Embassy in Muscat recorded around 100 deaths in road traffic accidents in 2016 in which Bangladeshi nationals were involved.
The number of expatriates who lost their lives in road accidents registered a 9.3 per cent rise during the first 11 months of 2016, compared with the same period last year, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
As many as 223 expatriates, 29 of them women, died in road accidents during this period.
“Besides these road traffic deaths, we recorded around 45 unnatural deaths,” Zahed Ahmad, counsellor of the labour wing of the Bangladesh Embassy in Muscat, said. Also, around 235 Bangladeshi expatriates in Oman died of natural causes. “Altogether, around 380 Bangladeshi nationals died in Oman in 2016. The number was around 340 in 2015,” he said.
According to the NCSI, as of 2016-end, Bangladeshi expatriates topped the number of migrants in Oman.
The NCSI data revealed that the number of Bangladeshis stood at 698,881, with Indians forming the second highest group at 689,660 and Pakistani expats accounting for 232,426.
For decades, Indians have made up the bulk of migrant workers in the Sultanate, but in November 2016, their numbers had overtaken the Indian migrants’ number.
In a three-year surge, the number of Bangladeshis increased by 197,688 while that of Indians increased by 91,426.
“Most of those coming to the Sultanate are blue collar workers. The Omani sponsors are also very happy with the Bangladeshi workers and this helps us employ more of them,” a Bangladeshi community member said.
“We are regularly distributing leaflets to raise awareness about road traffic among the community and are advising people how to cross roads,” Zahed Ahmad said.
Social workers from Bangladesh said, “Instead of walking to the nearest traffic junction and using the clearly demarcated zebra crossings, many prefer to dodge traffic on the highways (to get to the other side), which is a dangerous practice.”
A Bangladeshi expat, Mohammed Karim, admitted that it was not a safe way to cross the road, especially when the traffic is moving at high speed. “It’s not that safe but I make sure the road is clear before I cross it,” he said.
He also argued that more crossings and over bridges are the need of the hour. “Sometimes, we have to walk for more than a kilometre to cross the road,” he said.