M Humayun Kabir: Bus owners and workers have stopped operating transport services in different districts since yesterday morning citing safety of the workers and vehicles following student movement.
The students of schools and colleges mainly from Dhaka took to the streets demanding safety on the roads and justice for their two fellows who were killed in a tragic road accident at Airport Road in the capital on Sunday.Later, students from other districts joined in protest and it entered into the sixth consecutive day yesterday.In Dhaka, the number of public buses was very thin yesterday in the city due to the students protest.Some long-route buses left Dhaka last night but no buses left from the bus terminals in the capital since yesterday morning for safety reasons, said Faruk Talukder Sohel, chairman of Bangladesh Bus Truck Owners’ Association.Abdur Rahim Box Dudu, senior vice chairman of Bangladesh Road Transport Workers’ Federation, said the bus owners and workers in different districts halted their transport services fearing lack of security as some vehicles were vandalised by agitating students in different areas.“It is not a formal strike from the association,” he said.Meanwhile, inter-district bus communication remained suspended in Habiganj, Sunamganj, Sylhet, Comilla, Barisal, Madaripur, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Joypurhat, Mymensingh, Chuadanga, Jhenaidah, Kushtia, Khulna and Chandpur districts.In Habiganj, Transport owners called the strike in Habiganj protesting harassment and demanding safety of transport workers, said Shankha Shubhra Roy, general secretary of Habiganj Motor Owners’ Group, adding that no inter-district and local buses were leaving the Habiganj District Bus Terminal.In Sunamganj, the transport owners has kept their vehicles off the roads for an indefinite period following instructions from Dhaka Transport Owners’ Association, said Mukit Mukul, general secretary of Sunamganj Road Transport Owners’ Association.In Sylhet, Selim Ahmed Folik, chairman of Sylhet District Transport Union, said they have decided to enforce the strike due to the students’ protest as there is no safety for drivers and passengers on the road.