Train services were disrupted across Bangladesh on Tuesday as railway workers went on strike, demanding higher pensions and better benefits. This strike affected tens of thousands of passengers and freight services.
Saidur Rahman, the acting president of the Bangladesh Railway Running Staff and Workers Union, explained that the strike followed a failed meeting with the interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, on Monday night.
Rahman warned that the strike would continue indefinitely unless the government agrees to their demands.
The state-operated railway system in Bangladesh serves around 65 million passengers annually in the country of 170 million people. The system employs roughly 25,000 workers and runs a network of more than 36,000 kilometers (22,000 miles).
At the Kamlapur Railway Station in Dhaka, the capital, hundreds of frustrated passengers gathered, many of whom were unaware of the strike. Many of them waited for hours before eventually heading home.
As the country’s railway adviser made a visit, passengers expressed their frustrations by shouting complaints.
Fouzul Kabir Khan, the railway affairs adviser, described the nationwide strike as “regrettable” and urged the protesters to call off the strike. He stated that the “doors for discussion” were open to find a resolution to the ongoing strike.
Shahadat Hossain, a station manager in Dhaka, mentioned that at least 10 trains were scheduled to depart the station on Tuesday morning. Although authorities arranged buses as an alternative, they were insufficient to accommodate the demand.
Mohammed Nadim, who had traveled overnight from outside Dhaka to visit the southern coastal district of Cox’s Bazar, was left stranded at the Kamlapur Railway Station. He arrived at 5:30 a.m., but after an hour, he learned that his train would not be running.
“I came here at 5:30 a.m., but after about an hour, I found out that my train wouldn’t run. Now, I’ve been stuck here for hours with no clear solution. The station officials told me that my ticket will be refunded, but I’m unsure when,” he said while waiting at the station.
He declined to take the bus arranged by authorities as an alternative to the train.
“It’s too far. I came here to travel by train. I don’t even want to travel this distance by an air-conditioned bus, let alone one without air-conditioning,” he said.
Jamuna TV, a Dhaka-based station, reported that railway workers in Chattogram, the country’s second-largest city, also protested. This southeastern city, home to the nation’s largest seaport, plays a critical role in the country’s garment industry, which relies on trains to transport goods for export. The industry generates around $38 billion annually, primarily from exports to the United States and the European Union.
In Rajshahi, a northwestern region, angry passengers reportedly damaged station furniture and assaulted a staff member, according to Jamuna TV.
The interim government, led by Muhammad Yunus, has been in power since August, when former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India following a student-led uprising that ended her 15-year rule. The interim administration is struggling to restore order amid reports from global lending agencies like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank about slower economic growth.