Published : 09 Nov 2025, 06:47 PM
Updated : 28 Aug 2026, 01:29 AM
Government primary school teachers are conducting a work stoppage to protest the “police attack” on their protests pushing for three demands, including salaries at the grade 10 level.
The programme started on Sunday morning with several teachers at private schools informing bdnews24.com that a work stoppage was under way. However, classes are still being held in certain schools.
Meanwhile, teachers are holding a sit-in demonstration at Shaheed Minar for a second consecutive day to push for their three demands. Following the “police attack” on their protest, they are calling for Home Affairs Advisor Jahangir Alam Chowdhury and Primary and Primary Education Advisor Bidhan Ranjan Roy Poddar to resign.
Muhammad Shamshuddin Mashud, convenor of the Primary Teachers’ Demand Implementation Council, told bdnews24.com this morning: "The detained teachers are now at Shahbagh Police Station. They have yet to return. Our sit-in demonstration will not be moved. We will continue the sit-in programme at the Shaheed Minar until our demands are met.
"We are demanding the resignation of the home affairs advisor and the primary and mass education advisor as they are responsible for not implementing our three-point demands, the ambush conducted on innocent teachers at Shahbagh, the firing of rubber bullets, water cannons, tear shells, sound grenades and baton charges that injured hundreds of teachers."
Besides the implementation of 10th-grade pay, the teachers’ other demands include resolving promotion complications after 10 and 16 years of service and securing full divisional promotions.
The protests under the banner of the Primary Teachers’ Demand Implementation Council, a joint initiative by four separate teachers’ organisations, are ongoing.
The teachers began their continuous sit-in programme at Shaheed Minar to push for their demands on Saturday morning. Around 3:30pm, they started marching towards Shahabagh. Then, around 4pm, the police blocked them in front of Shahabagh Police Station.
At this time, the teachers' protest was disrupted by the police using sound grenades and water cannons, baton charges, and tear gas.
More than 150 teachers were injured and five people were arrested, according to protest leaders.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police claim that "the police fired several rounds of sound grenades and water cannons to disperse the agitators in the interest of the security of important state installations when a group of agitators broke the barricade and tried to cross the Shahbagh intersection and move towards the State Guest House Jamuna."
The teachers, who returned to Shaheed Minar in the face of the police obstructions, announced a work stoppage on Sunday. Around midnight the teachers condemned and protested the “police attack” by lighting candles.
WORK STOPPAGE UNDER WAY, BUT CLASSES STILL HELD IN SOME SCHOOLS
A work stoppage is underway at No. 114 Omar Beparikandi Government Primary School in Madaripur’s Shibchar Upazila, according to Rezaul Karim, a teacher at the school. He said, "We will continue to boycott classes and observe the strike until our demands are met or a decision is made at the central level. I condemn and protest the attack on teachers."
"However, not all schools in Shibchar are on strike. The Upazila Education Office is repeatedly enquiring about who is observing the work stoppage.”
A work stoppage is also underway at the Paschim Char Baushia Government Primary School in Barishal’s Hijla Upazila, said schoolteacher Mohammad Hasan Mahmud.
Teachers at the No. 72 South Timirkathi Government Primary School and Baidarpur Government Primary School in Jhalakathi’s Nalchity Upazila say they are also observing a work stoppage.
Meanwhile, another group of primary assistant teachers, under the banner of the “Primary Assistant Teachers Organisation Unity Council”, have given the government a deadline of Nov 15 to resolve their demands for grade 11 salaries, the resolutions of complications with achieving higher wage grades, and ensuring 100 percent promotion.
Teachers of the organisations affiliated with this group are not observing a work stoppage.
Shahinur Alamin, an assistant teacher at No. 21 Charigram Government Primary School in Keraniganj and leader of the council, said that there is no work stoppage at the school.
He said, "We strongly condemn and protest the heinous attack on teachers. We have visited the injured in the hospital and spoken to them. However, we are not observing a strike."
"The Unity Council’s movement is ongoing to achieve the salaries at the 11th grade level, promotions, and to resolve complications for higher grades. If the demands are not met by the 15th of November, we will hold a half-day strike on the 23rd and 24th of November, a full-day strike on the 25th and 26th of November and a sit-in demonstration in front of the Department of Primary Education on the 27th of November as previously announced. If there is no visible progress or announcement in fulfilling our demands within this period, we will boycott the exams and observe a hunger strike to the death from the 11th of December."
