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Students of Government Titumir College suspended their protest on Tuesday until next seven working days following government assurances that their demand for upgrading their institution to a university will be evaluated.
Responding to a government call for a dialogue, a 14-member delegation of students visited the Ministry of Education and discussed the issue with Md. Nahid Islam, adviser to the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications, and Information Technology, and Dr M Aminul Islam, special assistant to the education adviser.
Emerging from the meeting, the students expressed their satisfaction with the decision to form a committee within the next seven working days to evaluate the feasibility of upgrading the college to a university. Welcoming the initiative, they announced that they will not stage any further protests for now.
"The government has decided to form a committee within seven working days to examine whether Titumir College can be upgraded to a university. We are happy with this decision, and therefore, we will refrain from holding any protests for the time being," said a member of the delegation.
Dr Aminul Islam said, "Transforming the college into a university is a complex process. However, there is no public university in the northern part of Dhaka. Additionally, Titumir College has 10 acres of land. The committee will evaluate all aspects before making a final decision."
Earlier at around 11:30 am on the day, the protesters gathered in front of the college gate to press home their demand. A huge number of policemen were deployed outside the campus to avert any untoward eventualities.
On Monday, the students blocked roads and railway tracks in Mohakhali area for four and a half hours, pausing for two and a half hours before resuming their protest in the evening. They called off their blockade around 9:30 pm, announcing that further discussions were planned for Tuesday.
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