Students want gazette by Tuesday on half fare in public transports
Their ongoing protest will continue on Sunday and Monday to press home their demands
Students have issued a two-day ultimatum to issue a gazette notification to fulfil their 9-point charter of demands, that include half fares for them in public transports in road, waterway and railway across the country.
The protesting students said if the demands that were raised during Road Safety Movement 2018, are not met by Tuesday, they will besiege the office of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) on the day.
Besides, the ongoing protest will continue on Sunday and Monday to press home their demands. As part of the protests, students will check the fitness, license of vehicles, they added.
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On behalf of the protesting students, Shahidul Islam Daud announced their programme at Dhanmondi 27 intersection on Saturday.
He said, "We urge the government to issue a notification to fulfil our demands by Tuesday. Otherwise, we will besiege the BRTA office on that day. From the programme, we will announce a further course of action. This time, we do not want any verbal assurance."
Several hundred students from different educational institutions blocked the street on Dhanmondi 27 intersection in the city, halting traffic for three hours since 11am, to press home their demands.
Students chanted slogans -- "Want justice for killing Nayeem, a student of Notre Dame College who was run over by a garbage vehicle" -- "Why does the administration remain silent?" -- "Stop the murders in the name of accidents".
Students of Holy Cross Girls School and College, Eden Mohila College, Tejgaon College, Daffodil International College, Dhanmondi Govt Boys School, Lalmatia Mohila College, Mohammadpur Mohila College, Residential Model College, Munshi Abdur Rouf College, City College, Dhaka College and others joined the protest.
Adhora Debnath, a student of a college in Dhaka, urged students from all colleges across the country to support the ongoing demonstration and Tuesday's besiege programme, if the notification is not issued by this time.
Eden Mohila College student Nijhum Nahar said, "It is shameful for us that we have to wage a movement again to realise the 9-point demand of the Road Safety Movement 2018."
Moreover, students blocked the roads in the capital's Jatrabari and Uttara house building areas on the same demand.
What the the demand are
Justice must be ensured for road accident victims via speedy trial tribunal; Issuance of gazette notification for "half fares" for students across the country; girls' safety in public transports, footpaths and foot-over-bridges and all injured must be compensated, rehabilitated.
The demands also include-- Properly planned bus stops and parking facilities; Individual or group concerned must take responsibility of road accident victims; All drivers (both legal and illegal) must be brought under an extensive training programme; ensuring monitoring of the BRTA.
Moreover, an automated traffic management system must be adopted; Traffic laws must be added to the national curriculum for public awareness; electronic media should be used to do the same.
During the 2018 movement, the government accepted the nine-point demand but not a single one point of the demands has been implemented so far. For that, this time students do not want any verbal assurance.
Following the bus fare hike, accepting the demand of transport owners after fuel price hike, hundreds of students started demonstrating in the city streets demanding half fares in public transport for them.
