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frustrated, waited with no clear idea of when the roads would reopen.

Many parents were seen dragging exhausted children through congested streets, some even leaving their personal vehicles.

On the Facebook group, Traffic Alert, users warned others about roads to avoid and shared photos and videos of gridlock.

At Farmgate, students of Tejgaon College blocked one of the busiest intersections, demanding justice for their peer, Sakibul Hasan Rana, who died on December 10, four days after sustaining injuries in a dorm attack.

The blockade began around 11:15am, with the students chanting slogans demanding the arrest of all the killers.

Rana, 18, died around noon on December 10 while undergoing treatment at a Moghbazar hospital.

CNG-run auto-rickshaw driver Abdul Hamid said he left Sayedabad with passengers for Mirpur-1 at 12:30pm.

After reaching Shahbagh, he got stuck in a severe traffic jam. It took him three hours to travel from Shahbagh to Farmgate, he said.

“With traffic like this, I don’t even know if I can earn enough to pay today’s CNG deposit,” Hamid said.

Jahangir Alam, 55, a resident of Gazipur, spoke to this correspondent at 4:15pm at Farmgate.

He said he had gone to Banglamotor for some work. After finishing, he boarded a bus to return home. However, it took him over half an hour to move just 100 to 150 yards from Banglamotor.

“As I heard that students had blocked roads in the Farmgate area, I got off the bus and walked to Farmgate,” he said.

As the students withdrew the blockade around 4:30pm, traffic started moving at a snail’s pace.

Meanwhile, students of Dhaka College and Eden Mohila College blocked the Science Lab intersection around 12:30pm, demanding the issuance of an ordinance for Dhaka Central University.

They first gathered on their campuses and later marched towards Science Lab. Vehicular movement in the area came to a halt.

The students withdrew their blockade around 5:45pm. Before leaving the Science Lab area, they held a press conference, where they said they would block the three key points again today.

Students of Government Bangla College blocked the Technical Intersection around 12:00pm with the same demand. They left the area around 3:30pm, according to SM Jakaria, officer-in-charge of Darussalam Police Station.

The traffic situation in the area worsened as a result, he added.

Students of Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College and Kabi Nazrul Government College blocked the Tanti Bazar area around 11:15am, creating a huge tailback.

The students left the area around 2:15pm, said OC Mahfuzul Haque of Bangshal Police Station.