Greater Ctg transport strike called off, only after daylong public suffering
The decision comes following a meeting of transport owners association with the district administration and law enforcement agencies
Transport owners and workers in greater Chattogram have postponed their 48-hour transport strike upon receiving assurance from the administration to meet their demands.
The Greater Chattogram Public Transport Owners and Workers Unity Council announced their decision after a meeting with Chattogram District Administration, and law enforcement agencies yesterday afternoon at Chattogram Circuit House.
Manjurul Alam, convener of the council, said "At the request of the Chattogram deputy Commissioner, we postponed the strike. If our vehicles are attacked, we will be forced to call strike again."
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On Saturday, the 'Greater Chattogram Public Transport Owners and Workers Unity Council' called for a 48-hour transport strike in five districts amid protests at the Chattogram University of Engineering and Technology (Cuet) over the death of two fellows in a road crash.
Protesting transport workers were seen obstructing the plying of buses on various roads in Chattogram from Sunday morning.
Travellers in greater Chattogram suffered immensely amid the ongoing heatwave as no bus left Chattogram city for Cox's Bazar, Rangamati, Bandarban, and Khagrachhari and no bus came to Chattogram from the aforesaid districts. No Dhaka-bound-buses left Chattogram too.
Earlier on 22 April, two CUET students, Shanto Saha and Taufiq Hossain, were killed when a 'Shah Amanat Paribahan' bus crashed into a motorcycle in Rangunia upazila. Another student was also injured.
Following the accident, CUET students staged a demonstration by blocking the Chattogram-Kaptai highway near their institution under Raujan upazila in the district and torched some vehicles.
Aggrieved students blocked part of the Chattogram-Kaptai highway adjacent to CUET campus to protest their fellows' deaths and vandalised several Shah Amanat Paribahan buses.
On 24 April, the bus driver was arrested from the Kotwali area in the port city. On 25 April, the Cuet was declared closed for an indefinite period and they were asked to vacate their dormitories.
Protesting the move, the students locked the vice-chancellor's office and set fire to one of the two buses confiscated by them.
Facing students' further protest, the authority cancelled the decision to leave the residential halls.
Amid their protest, the Sramik Malik Oikya Parishad called for a 48-hour transport strike in the greater Chattogram districts to protest the arrests of linemen and other transport workers, CUET students vandalising transports, and the raids to find unfit transports.
