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People suffer from strike on waterways

Pankag Karmakar
Holding luggage in one hand and his child in another, Nuruzzaman was desperately looking for a launch followed by his wife with another child in her lap at Sadarghat terminal.
They came to the capital around a week ago to visit a relative and were scheduled to return home in Shariatpur yesterday.
"After coming to the terminal, we learned that there is a strike. Now we have to go to the bus station enduring the same traffic jam and spending more money," said Nuruzzaman who works at a restaurant in Shariatpur.
He was talking to The Daily Star around 10:30am at the launch terminal.
Not only Nuruzzaman, many other passengers and traders had the same experience as vessel operation has been suspended since 12:01am onTuesday.
Water transport workers enforced an indefinite strike across the country to press home their 15-point demands including a minimum monthly wage of Tk 10,000, an increase in overtime pay, festival bonuses and other benefits, ensuring security and maintaining navigability of the waterways.
Currently, minimum wage of a worker isTk3,900, they said.
However, a number of owners claimed they were operating their vessels by employing "alternative workers”.
Usually, around 70 launches leave the Sadarghat terminal every day for different destinations. But around 25 launches left the terminal yesterday, said officials of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (B1WTA) last evening.
The work abstention has aimed at a time when Eid-ul-Azha is only a couple of weeks ahead. Many traders may face trouble as their goods carrying cost is likely to increase if the strike is not called off.
"I have brought some readymade garment goods from a factory in Dhaka. Like every time, I was planning to carry the goods on a launch for my shop in Munshiganj. But now I have to use the road and carrying cost will be almost double," said Mohammad Rinku, who owns a small readymade garments shop.
During a visit to Sadarghat yesterday, it was seen that the regular hustle and bustle of the terminal took a desert look. The usual gatherings of passengers, launch operators, day labourers and vendors have all disappeared.
"The more passengers come to the terminal, the more our sales go up. As there are very few passengers today, our sale has drastically dropped," said Jamal Uddin, who sells bread and biscuits.
Talking to reporters at his office, Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan said the workers have enforced the strike out of the blue. Sudden enforcement of such a programme is irrational, he observed.
The Department of Labour is responsible to formulate and revise the wage structure of the workers, he informed.
Contacted, SM Ashraftizzaman, director of the Department of Labour, said they were working to revise the wage structure of the waterway workers. But the process remains halted as vessel owners filed a writ petition with the High Court against it.
"We are observing our programme in a peaceful
manner and will continue it until our demands are met," said Bulbul Ahmed, convener of the Nou-Shramik Sangram Parishad that enforced the strike.
He told The Daily Star that they have been requesting the vessel owners and the government authorities concerned to meet their demands for last couple of years in vein.
Earlier on April 21 this year, the workers enforced another work abstention programme for the same demands. However, they called off the strike on April 27 following a tripartite meeting among the workers, owners and the government officials concerned.
The meeting decided to revise the wage structure setting the minimum wage atTk 10,000. But the owners did not agree to the decision and filed the writ petition against it.
Talking to The Daily Star, Badiuzzaman Badal, senior vice-chairman of Bangladesh Inland Waterways (passenger carriers) Association, said, "It is not possible to run the business if the minimum wage is set at He 10,000."
Asked about a solution to the deadlock, several launch owners claimed that many workers are willing to work under the existing wage structure and would return to work.
Like Sadarghat, operation of passenger vessels and loading and unloading of goods remained suspended in different ports across the country, report our correspondents.
In Barisal and Chandpur, river communications came to a standstill causing sufferings to passengers.
In Bagerhat, goods loading and unloading at Mongla Port remained halted due to the work abstention.
Port officials said around a dozen of goods-laden vessels were waiting at the port for unloading.
In Chittagong, 32 mother vessels with cement clinkers, limestone, stones, wheat, fertiliser, raw materials, salt and scrap metals were stranded at the outer anchorage of the port.