Muktibani Online Report
Police fired tear gas and used water cannons today to disperse garment workers in Ashulia after they left several factories and attempted to block roads, demanding a minimum monthly wage of Tk 30,000, an end to blacklisting and fulfilment of other demands.
Mohibullah Akon, assistant commissioner (AC land) of Ashulia Circle, confirmed to Media over the phone at around 9:45am that workers from several factories had walked out of their workplaces.
He said the workers had twice attempted to block the Nabinagar-Chandra highway in the Kabirpur area, adding, “We are trying to bring the situation under control.”
Rumours that workers had been detained prompted police and garment workers to take positions opposite each other in Nishchintapur on the Bypail-Abdullahpur road. When workers attempted to block the road, police fired tear gas and used water cannons to disperse them, the assistant commissioner said.
Subsequently, most factories on both sides of the road declared a holiday, he added.
According to witnesses, workers initially gathered in front of an Ananta Group factory in the morning before moving to a Ha-Meem Group factory, where they threw bricks and stones at police.
Tensions escalated when workers attempted to block the road. Clashes broke out between workers and police, involving chases and counter-chases.
A worker at Newage Group said they left the factory after arriving for work in the morning amid reports circulating overnight that workers had been detained. The factory subsequently declared a holiday, the worker added.
Harun Or Rashid, inspector (investigation) of Ashulia Police Station, and Saiful Alam, officer-in-charge of Savar Model Police Station, confirmed to Media that no cases had been filed and no one had been detained in connection with the protests.
Mohammad Mominul Islam Bhuiyan, superintendent of police of Ashulia Industrial Police-1, said in a WhatsApp message at around 10:30am that the exact number of factories declaring holidays that day could not yet be determined.
“The situation is going to be deteriorated,” he said.
Garment workers' protests triggered clashes, arson and highway blockades in Dhaka and its outskirts, as well as in Gazipur, yesterday—the same day the government formed a new wage board.
By evening, at least 529 garment factories in Mirpur, Savar, Ashulia, Gazipur and Mymensingh had declared holidays, according to a situation report shared by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
