Traffic disrupted as apparel workers agitate in Gazipur
Traffic in Gazipur gridlocked as apparel workers begin their agitation over Tk30,000 minimum wag. Agamir Somoy.
Apparel workers in Gazipur have taken to the streets for the fourth consecutive day, demanding a minimum wage of Tk 30,000. Most garment factories have been closed.
Since Tuesday morning, workers from various garment factories in Gazipur have been gathering in the Nawjor and Bhogra Bypass areas of the city. Around 9:30 am, a group of workers set fire to some abandoned furniture in the Nawjor area.
The workers took a position on the western side of the Nawjor Flyover and blocked the Dhaka-Tangail highway. As a result, all types of vehicular movement on that road came to a halt.
Around 10:30 am, BGB, SRB, and police dispersed the protesters by firing sound grenades and tear gas shells in the Nawjor area.
Md. Harun Or Rashid, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Bashan Police Station confirmed the information to the Agamir Somoy.
Gazipur District Commissioner Nurul Karim Bhuiyan said, "A total of 11 platoons of BGB have been deployed to prevent disorder."
He said workers were also demonstrating by taking positions on highways in the Kaliakair, Shafipur, and Konabari areas of the city.
The OC said that around 10 am, garment workers took to the highway in the Bhogra Bypass area with protests, obstructing traffic movement.
He said that due to the workers' movement, traffic on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway and Dhaka-Tangail highway was being disrupted.
Leaders and activists of BNP and its affiliated organizations took positions in the Nawjor Chandna Chowrasta and Konabari areas.
OC Harun said, "Police are working to keep traffic normal and control the situation."
On Monday, a holiday was declared in about 150 factories in Gazipur, but several factories resumed production from Tuesday morning. Around 9 am, some protesting workers went to various factories and threw bricks and stones. They called on workers to shut down the factories and join the movement. At one stage, holidays were declared again in most factories.
