stylistic:tone
Bangladesh

The country's extensive river network makes ferries a practical and affordable mode of transport. Passenger ferries, locally referred to as "launches," are widely used to travel to the southern and south-western regions of Bangladesh from the capital. The most popular destinations include Barisal, Bhola, Patuakhali, and Khulna. Additionally, there are water-transport routes connecting Dhaka with Kolkata in India.

Approximately 200 launches operate across 107 water routes throughout the country as of 2022. To support the launch services, the BIWTA has developed 292 wharfs (ghats) for the docking of these vessels, and oversees 380 launch terminals.

There are 53 roll-on/roll-off ferries running on seven routes across the country: Paturia–Daulatdia, Aricha–Kazirhat, Shimulia–Banglabazar, Bhola–Lakshmipur, Lajarhat–Veduria, Char Kalipur–Kalipur Bazar and Harinaghat Chandpur–Shariatpur.

More than 800,000 small and medium wooden sailboats and rowboats, often retrofitted to be motorised, are an important means of transportation for people and goods across the country, especially during the rainy season. These boats transport over 1.2 million tonnes of freight annually. Among these are the dingi, which is the oldest form of Bengal boat. Larger cargo boats includes vessels such as the balam, bajra and sampan. Under the category of bainkata (flat-bottomed) boats are the ghasi, gachari, dorakha, kathami, mallar, patam and panshi, among others. Ubiquitous throughout Bangladesh, especially in monsoon flood-prone regions, is the kosha, a small, highly manoeuvrable boat that is easy to operate. These various traditional wooden boats play a vital role in providing transportation during the rainy season when other modes become impractical due to flooding.

The ferries are often overloaded and continue to operate in poor weather; many people die each year in ferry and launch accidents. From 2005 to 2015, nearly 1,800 casualties have been reported due to river transport incidents, a number which may be higher due to the prevalence of unregistered vessels. In 2014, the launch Pinak 6 sank in the Padma River with more than 200 passengers aboard near Munshiganj's Louhajang Upazila.