Garment Workers Block Highway, Set Fire to Police Box

Garment workers blocked highways in the Konabari and Kashimpur industrial areas of Gazipur on Sunday, demanding that the minimum monthly wage for garment workers be raised to Tk 30,000. During the protest, demonstrators set fire to a traffic police box in Konabari, causing a long traffic jam on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway between the Chandna Chowrasta bypass and Chandra in Kaliakair.

At around 8:30am on November 1, workers from several factories left their workplaces and took to the streets instead of joining their shifts. They subsequently blocked the highway, bringing traffic to a complete halt.

Protesters later set fire to a traffic police box in Konabari and burned fires on the highway as part of their demonstration.

Zafar Ali Khan, officer-in-charge of Naojor Highway Police Station, said workers had blocked the road between Chandra and Konabari, halting traffic. Authorities were trying to resolve the situation through discussions with the workers.

Gazipur Industrial Police Superintendent Md Amzad Hossain said workers had taken to the streets from around 8:30am without joining their shifts before blocking the Dhaka-Tangail Highway.