The teachers and employees under the government鈥檚 monthly pay order system on Tuesday announced that they would block the capital鈥檚 Shahbagh crossing area at 12:00 noon today if the government failed to meet their demands for pay hike by that time.
They made the announcement Tuesday evening after a four-hour blockade near the High Court crossing, where the police intercepted their march towards the secretariat from the Central Shaheed Minar on the Dhaka University campus in the afternoon.
The blockade created huge traffic congestion in the adjacent areas, including the areas of the High Court, Gulistan, Paltan and Dhaka University.
Tuesday was the second consecutive day of the teachers and employees鈥� non-stop sit-in programme on the Central Shaheed Minar premises.
The day was also the second consecutive day of their countrywide work abstention for an indefinite period.
They are protesting under the banner of MPO-bhukto Shikkha Jatiyakaran Pratyashi Jote, a platform of the MPO teachers and employees seeking job nationalisation.
Their three demands are allowing 20 per cent of their basic salary as house rent allowance, Tk 1,500 as medical allowance and an increase in the festival allowance for employees from the current 50 per cent to 75 per cent.
Since Tuesday morning, a huge number of teachers and employees from different districts gathered at the Central Shaheed Minar premises to press home their demands.
They began a march towards the secretariat at about 4:00pm.
The police, however, stopped the march by putting barricades near the High Court crossing.
The protesters then started staging a sit-in there and vowed to continue the protest until their demands were met.
Vehicular movement in the nearby areas stopped immediately and caused severe traffic gridlock. Many people had to begin walking to their destinations due to the traffic congestion.聽
At about 8:00pm, the Jote member secretary, principal Delawar Hossain Azizi, announced that they would block Shahbagh intersection at 12:00 noon on Wednesday if the government failed to meet their demands by issuing a circular by that time.
He warned that they would announce tougher movement, including a march towards Jamuna and fast unto death if the police attacked the teachers again.
抖阴精品 correspondent in Sylhet reported that the MPO teachers and employees staged demonstrations on Tuesday, boycotting the scheduled academic and official activities.
Md Mokabbir Ali, assistant head teacher of Siraj Uddin Ahmed Academy at Shrirampur in Sylhet city, said that they, like teachers of other institutions, staged a sit-in on the campus by boycotting all academic and official activities.
抖阴精品 correspondent in Rangpur reported that MPO teachers and employees in the district continued their work abstention for the second consecutive day.
Abdullah Al Harun Bappy, a teacher at the Adarsha High School in the city, said that teachers did not join the classes on Tuesday.
Atiur Rahman, the president of Rangpur district unit of the Bangladesh Teachers Association and also the principal of Jobeda Azizzun Nesa Girls School, said that the teachers observed the work abstention in most of the institutions in the district.
Earlier on October 12, the police dispersed the teachers using water cannon, hurling sound grenades and charging batons in Dhaka as they blocked the road in front of the National Press Club to press home the demands.
