Students from seven government colleges affiliated with Dhaka University blocked the Science Laboratory Intersection on Wednesday demanding setting up of an independent university for them.
As part of their programme announced earlier, the students from the seven colleges gathered at Science Laboratory Intersection, holding up traffic on different roads in the capital city for about five hours.
The blockade prevented all vehicles from passing through the Science Lab and Nilkhet intersections. However, emergency vehicles such as ambulances, fire services, and police vehicles are allowed through. Long lines of vehicles were seen in many areas of the city as people chose to walk to their destinations instead of waiting in trafficfor extended periods. Traffic police mentioned that disruptions on a major road affect others, and this situation was no exception.
At around 5:00 pm, the protesters announced that a peaceful blockade programme and hunger strike would be held again on Sunday (November 3) at 11:00 am at the Science Lab intersection.
They also declared that department-wise online discussion meetings and an online campaign would be organised in every college from Thursday to Saturday.
The protesters say they will end the movement once the government meets their demand for establishing an independent university for the seven colleges.
Earlier, at around 11:00am, students took a procession from Dhaka College to the Science Lab intersection. Around 11:45am, the students started protesting by blocking the intersection. Earlier, they marched on the Dhaka College campus.
The protests caused traffic jams around the Science Laboratory and Mirpur Road, leading to significant inconvenience. As the congestion gradually spread, it impacted various parts of the city.
Around 2:00 pm, a reporter from the Bangladesh Post left Kakrail for Tejgaon, taking over an hour to cover the distance by motorcycle. “Vehicles were barely moving even before the Moghbazar flyover,” he said. “Many, like me, left their vehicles to walk toward their destinations.”
Protesting students demand the establishment of a “University Transformation Commission” to create an independent public university. They reject the Education Ministry’s current committee and pledge to continue their protest until their demands are met.
Sadia Afrin Mou, a student at Eden Mohila College, said, “We’ve approached officials, including the education advisor, seeking solutions to our problems. No action has been taken so far. We want a commission, not another committee.”
The students had previously given an ultimatum to form the commission by Monday (October 28), threatening stricter measures if their demands weren’t met. After the deadline passed, they took to the streets.
On October 24, the Ministry of Education had formed a 13-member committee to address the academic and administrative issues of the seven colleges, allowing six weeks for recommendations. However, the students demand an immediate commission instead.
In an effort to improve education standards, seven colleges were affiliated with Dhaka University on February 16, 2017, including Dhaka College, Eden Mohila College, Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College, Kabi Nazrul Government College, Begum Badrunnesa Government Mohila College, Government Bangla College, and Government Titumir College.
Students previously blocked the Science Laboratory intersection on October 21 and 23 to demanding an independent university.
Abdur Rahman, the focal person for the Seven College Transformation Team, claimed, “The university profits from the seven colleges but invests very little in them.”
He complains that they have no end of suffering in the work of Registrar’s building of Dhaka University.
“The term ‘affiliated’ wasn’t on our certificates before, but now it’s been added. We identified 37 such issues and want a separate university to resolve them.”
On public inconvenience, Rahman said, “We don’t want to cause suffering. If our demands are met promptly, we’ll never block roads like this again.”
Khandaker Nazmul Hasan, Additional Commissioner (Traffic) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said that during the Science Laboratory protest, students from Titumir College also gathered in Mohakhali.
He said that the city’s roads are interlinked like nerves, where blockages in one area affect the whole city, as happened today.
Severe congestion was reported around Science Laboratory, Shahbagh, Karwan Bazar, and Mohakhali. Hasan added, “We’re trying to use alternative routes to alleviate the congestion.”
