Garment workers block highway at Chandra in Kaliakair over wage demand, clash with police

Garment factory workers have again blocked the Dhaka-Tangail highway for about three hours demanding a minimum wage of Tk 30,000. During the blockade on Saturday (31 October) at Chandra in Kaliakair Upazila of Gazipur, the workers clashed with police.

From 2:30 pm on Saturday, the workers' blockade caused severe traffic congestion on the Dhaka-Tangail highway. With traffic on the highway completely stopped, thousands of passengers and drivers suffered. To avoid an untoward situation, at least 12 factories in the area declared a holiday.

Police and local sources said that at around 2:30 pm on Saturday, workers of the Interstop factory began the protest by blocking the Dhaka-Tangail highway at the Chandra Palli Bidyut area of Kaliakair Upazila. Workers from several other factories later joined. Sacks of earth, wood and bamboo were thrown onto the highway and set on fire, stopping traffic for several kilometres.

The protesting workers said they had been petitioning factory management for several days to raise wages and allowances. As management reached no decision, the angry workers stopped work and eventually launched the movement.

Speaking to industrial police and workers, it was learned that for the past two weeks workers have been protesting in Konabari, Mouchak and other areas demanding higher wages. In the meantime, the government has decided to form a new wage board to raise workers' pay. Even so, worker unrest continues at various factories.

On Saturday at the lunch break, instead of returning to work, Interstop workers took position on the Dhaka-Tangail highway. They then dumped sacks of rubbish on the road to create the blockade. Workers of the nearby Divine Textile factory later joined them. Worker unrest spread to factories from Chandra to Konabari, and factory authorities declared a holiday at 12 factories.

On receiving the news, police from the local station and the industrial police went to the spot and tried to persuade the workers and bring the situation under control. Police requested the workers to leave the highway to ease the public suffering. But the workers ignored the request, kept the highway blocked and set fires on it.

At around 5:30 pm, when police tried to remove the workers from the road, a clash began. Police fired tear gas shells and sound grenades to disperse them. The workers threw brickbats at police. Several people were injured, the whole area turned into a battlefield, and panic spread all around.

Kaliakair Police Station Officer-in-Charge Shahidul Islam said, 'We are trying to bring the situation under control by persuading the workers. Because of this incident, 10 to 12 nearby factories have declared a holiday. We have come to the spot to calm them. We are trying to control the clash.'

Gazipur Industrial Police Superintendent Mohammad Amzad Hossain said, 'The situation was normal from the morning. From the afternoon, workers of several factories joined the movement. The workers blockaded the Dhaka-Tangail highway at the Palli Bidyut area for about an hour. When we went to move them, they threw brickbats at police. That is how the clash started. We are trying to bring the situation under control.'