After 10 days of protests, the non-government teachers and employees on the monthly pay order scheme are scheduled to return to their workplaces today after the government has conceded their main demand for house rent increase.
They withdrew their movement after the government on Tuesday decided to introduce 15 per cent of their basic salaries or minimum Tk 2,000 as house rent in two phases.
The teachers also said that they would take extra classes on all the Saturdays before the annual examinations at the educational institutions where academic activities were affected by the movement.
Classes stalled at the MPO educational institutions for the past eight days due to a work abstention programme as part of the movement.
Several thousand teachers and employees from different districts, under the banner of MPO-bhukto Shikkha Jatiyakaran Pratyashi Jote (platform aspiring for the nationalisation of MPO educational institutions) started the protest on October 12, pressing for increases in allowances.
Capitulating at last, the Finance Division on Tuesday morning issued a letter addressing the education ministry, approving a 7.5 per cent of basic pay as house rent of MPO teachers and employees from the coming November 1 in the context of the limited government budget.
Another 7.5 per cent of basic pay would be introduced from July 1, 2026, it read.
Earlier on October 19, MPO teachers and employees rejected the government鈥檚 initiative to introduce 5 per cent of basic salaries.
A press release issued by the Chief Adviser鈥檚 press wing on Tuesday read that the interim government admitted that the demands of MPO teachers and employees were reasonable.
But chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus noted that due to the country鈥檚 fragile economic condition鈥攁 result of 15 years of massive corruption and looting鈥攖he economy, though gradually improving under the interim government, had not yet reached the capacity to afford a 20 per cent house rent allowance increase, the press release read.
鈥楾herefore, the government had to take this decision based on realities,鈥� the release quoted Professor Yunus.
At about 12:30pm on Tuesday education adviser Professor Chowdhury Rafiqul Abrar announced the latest decision of the government at a press conference held at the Bangladesh Secretariat.
Before the press conference a representative team of the teachers and employees, led by the platform member secretary Delawar Hossain Azizi, met with the adviser.
Platform leaders also attended the press conference.
The adviser also urged the teachers to return to their classrooms, in response of which Delawar Hossain said that they would return to the classrooms tomorrow (Wednesday).
On Tuesday, the protesters were scheduled to hold a procession covering their faces with black cloths from Central Shaheed Minar to Shahbagh at 12:00 noon.
Returning from the secretariat, Delawar Hossain at about 1:30pm announced the withdrawal of all protest programmes at an address to the demonstrators on the Central Shaheed Minar premises, where the protesters stationed themselves since the beginning of their protest on October 13.
Announcing that they would take extra classes on all Saturdays before the final examinations, he added, 鈥榃e do not want to harm the academic lives of the students.鈥�
The other demands of the three-point demand charter of the teachers and employees were increases in medical and festival allowances.
Regarding medical allowance, they wanted Tk 1,500, which is currently Tk 500 and regarding festival allowance of employees, they wanted 75 per cent of their basic pay, which is currently 50 per cent.
Their indefinite sit-in at Central Shaheed Minar in Dhaka city along with countrywide work abstention began on October 13.
Protesters also held an indefinite hunger strike since October 17, began a fast unto death programme on October 20, and also blocked roads and held marches during their protests.
Police used force to disperse them on October 12 as they marched to the National Press Club area.
Different political parties, including Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party and organisations expressed solidarity with the protest earlier.
