Dhaka [Bangladesh], January 29: Train services across Bangladesh came to a standstill on Tuesday as railway staff went on an indefinite strike, demanding higher pensions and other benefits.
Thousands of passengers were stranded on platforms as they were told their trains would not run.
The strike has affected operations of some 400 passenger trains, including over 100 inter-city services, and dozens of freight trains operated by the state. The railway carries about 250,000 passengers daily and employs about 25,000 people.
Angry passengers complain of disruptions
In Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, the main Kamlapur Railway Station was swarmed by thousands of angry passengers who were not aware of the strike.
"I came here at 5:30 a.m. from outside Dhaka. But after one hour or so, I came to know that my train will not run," said Mohammed Nadim who had travelled hundreds of kilometers to the capital for a connecting train to a southern coastal town.
"Now I have been stranded here for hours without any hope," he told The Associated Press.
In the northwestern region of Rajshahi, Dhaka-based Jamuna TV reported that angry passengers smashed furniture of a station and attacked a staff member.
Why is the staff on strike?
The country's overwhelmed railway staff has been known to work overtime to make up for understaffing.
While they traditionally received extra pay and benefits calculated on the extra hours, the ousted Sheikh Hasina-led government revoked the additional benefits in November 2021, causing discontent among workers.
The Railways Ministry subsequently reversed the decision in 2022, but new recruits have not been given the extra benefits with their contracts explicitly stating the same.
Tuesday's strike was called for after a meeting with Bangladesh's interim government, headed by Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus, failed to reach a deal late on Monday.
Saidur Rahman, acting president of the Bangladesh Railway Running Staff and Workers Union, said the strike would continue indefinitely if the government does not accept their demands.
Jamuna TV station reported that railway workers protested in Chattogram, the country's second largest city.
The location is home to Bangladesh's largest seaport which exports garments to the rest of the world. The country's garment industry in turn relies on the railway network to transport goods to the seaport.
Source: Times of Oman
