Satellite-based high-speed Starlink internet service was launched on a trial basis on four intercity trains on March 13 this year — the first such service in the country. The trains involved in this Posts and Telecommunications Division initiative are the Parjatak Express, Parabat Express, Upaban Express and Banalata Express.
About 60 routers were installed on these trains. But within six months, 45 of them have been stolen. It isn’t just the routers — a Starlink antenna has also been removed from the roof of the Upaban Express, which runs on the Dhaka-Sylhet route.
Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited (BSCL) regularly monitors the functionality of this equipment. The large-scale theft was discovered during recent monitoring. After signal loss was detected from one of the Upaban Express antennas, an on-site inspection found the antenna missing — only the mounting bracket remained.
BSCL officials said each router costs 8,000 to 10,000 taka, and a single antenna costs more than 200,000 taka. The thefts have caused significant financial losses as well as service disruptions.
Emadur Rahman, the company’s managing director and CEO, told media that uninterrupted service will be difficult to provide unless the equipment theft is stopped.
Railway authorities are still not certain who is stealing the routers. Syed Md. Shahiduzzaman, chief signal and telecommunications engineer of Bangladesh Railway, told media that theft on moving trains is a recurring problem. He said coordination with security forces and police has been strengthened to prevent such incidents, and that several people have already been arrested.
He said drug users often steal the equipment without realizing its actual value, mistaking it for scrap metal and selling it cheaply.
Meanwhile, authorities are taking new steps to prevent repeated theft. Rehan Asif Asad, the prime minister’s adviser for posts, telecommunications and information technology, told media that although the routers stolen in recent months have been replaced, the thefts haven’t stopped. Under a new plan, routers on the 50 new railcars set to join the fleet will be installed within the coaches’ internal structure. Antennas will also no longer be mounted on the roofs of ordinary coaches, but on the roof of the engine car instead, in order to prevent theft.