FROM PAGE 1

Nila Chowdhury, a homemaker, went to the station at 9:45am to catch the Kishoreganj Express. She along with her 11-year-old boy were also seen waiting.

“We heard about the strike on Facebook. We thought it won’t be effective. But we are stranded now,” she said.

Shefa and Nila had gotten their tickets in advance.

Like them, thousands of train passengers suffered at railway stations across the country. Some waited in uncertainty while others left seeing no hope.

Police personnel were seen at the station to manage the crowd and prevent any untoward incidents.

Mohammed Gias Uddin, who was seen waiting at Chattogram Railway Station with several pieces of luggage, had purchased a ticket for the Subarna Express to return to Dhaka.

“I have several bags, so I chose the train for a smoother journey. The railway authorities could have informed us via text, but they didn’t,” he said.

Zia Habib, another passenger, waited for two hours at the station for the Cox’s Bazar Express. “Later, I was compelled to travel by bus,” he said.

Hanif Ali, Joydebpur railway station master, told our Gazipur correspondent that hundreds of passengers were stranded at the station.

Farida Akhtar, 25, who was heading to Joypurhat from Thakurgaon Road Railway Station, said, “After travelling 15km to reach the station, I learnt that the trains are not running. Why weren’t online ticket sales halted if the service is suspended?”

Similar situation was reported from Pabna, Khulna, Sylhet, and other districts.

THE MEETINGS

The rail adviser visited Kamalapur Railway Station around 10:00am. He criticised the protesting workers for enforcing the strike holding the passengers hostage.

Replying to a question, he said some of the staffers’ demands had already been met, but the work abstention continued despite progress being made.

He said they were open to discussions. If necessary, the government would take “other steps” to resolve the issue.

State-run BRTC arranged buses on some routes to help the train passengers get to their destinations, he said.

After he left the station an hour later, railways ministry secretary Fahimul Islam and other top officials of his ministry and BR went to the VIP waiting room at the station. Shimul Biswas joined them.

Around 1:00pm, some mid-level leaders of the union held a meeting with Shimul in a separate room.

After the around one-hour meeting, Shimul informed the railways ministry secretary about the union’s position.

Around 3:30pm, the rail secretary and other officials left without making any comments to waiting journalists.

WHY THE STRIKE?

Due to manpower shortage, locomasters, assistant locomasters, guards, and travelling ticket checkers have traditionally worked beyond their duty hours and received extra pay for that.

They also received pension benefits based on the pay for their extra work until 2021.

But in November that year, the Awami League government declined to grant pension benefits on the extra work.

Following a strike in April 2022, the railways ministry intervened and decided to continue the pension benefits. However, the staffers have long been demanding cancellation of the November 2021 order, saying in a changed situation their benefits could go away again.

In addition, newly recruited assistant locomasters, who were appointed in 2022, have not been receiving most of these benefits, as their appointment letters stated they would not receive extra pay during their service or after retirement.

In December last year, the newly recruited locomasters went on work abstention, demanding benefits their predecessors got, while their predecessors stopped taking on additional duties for several days. They also demanded cancellation of the 2021 gazette.

They stopped their protest following an assurance by railway authorities.

The finance ministry on January 23 this year issued a circular saying the newly recruited assistant locomasters will get 100 percent “running allowance” instead of 75 percent. However, the “running allowance” would not exceed their monthly basic salary, it said.

It did not say anything about their post-retirement benefits.

On January 22, the association at a press conference in Chattogram announced the indefinite nationwide strike from yesterday.