DHAKA, May 22, (V7N) – Bangladesh Railway (BR) has commenced the sale of advance tickets for homebound passengers in anticipation of the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha festival.

"All advance train tickets are being sold online. However, unsold tickets will be available at the counter during the final period," BR Director General Md Afzal Hossain told BSS today.

Hossain further announced that the government will introduce five additional pairs of special trains to facilitate a smooth and hassle-free Eid journey. Return train tickets will be available for purchase starting May 30.

According to BR sources, the sale of advance tickets for all intercity trains in the western zone began at 8 AM on Wednesday, while tickets for eastern zone trains became available from 2 PM. A total of 33,315 seats are available across 43 intercity trains departing from Dhaka to various destinations nationwide.

The advance ticket sales schedule is as follows: tickets for journeys on May 31 were available on May 21; for June 1, on May 22; for June 2, on May 23; for June 3, on May 24; for June 4, on May 25; for June 5, on May 26; and for June 6, on May 27.

The Director General stated that each passenger is permitted to purchase a maximum of four tickets using a single user ID. He added that, responding to passenger requests, BR has decided to sell 25 percent standing tickets against the total number of seats directly from station counters.

BR sources confirmed that the weekly holidays of all intercity trains will be suspended from June 3 until the day before Eid. Following Eid-ul-Azha, intercity train services will revert to their regular schedule. However, no intercity train services will operate on Eid day itself.

Eid-ul-Azha is anticipated to be celebrated on June 7 or 8, depending on the sighting of the moon.

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