Transport workers lift blockade in Dhaka’s Mohakhali after 2 hours

Transport workers who blocked both sides of the road in front of Dhaka’s Mohakhali Bus Terminal have cleared the road after two hours.

They left around 3:15pm on Sunday, Additional Deputy Commissioner Ziaur Rahman of Gulshan Traffic Division said.

Traffic movement gradually returned to normal, although heavy congestion persisted in the area.

“We sat with the transport workers’ leaders, owners, and students. The issue was resolved in discussion with both parties and they left the street. The traffic flow went back to normal,” said ADC Ziaur.

Earlier, around 1:30pm, the workers parked buses across the road, cutting off traffic on both sides and triggering severe gridlock stretching from Banani to Tejgaon.

Banani Police Station chief Russell Sarwar said the incident began when some students of Titumir College, who were assisting traffic police, clashed with drivers and workers of Ekota Paribahan.

“Afterwards, senior police officials sat with the drivers and workers to resolve the matter,” he said.

In the meantime, students stopped another seven or eight buses of Ekota Paribahan. In response, the transport workers parked buses across the road at several points between Mohakhali Railgate and Tejgaon’s Nabisco factory, effectively blocking the major thoroughfare and stranding commuters under sweltering heat.