BAU Correspondent:
Students from the Faculty of Agriculture at Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) staged a protest on Tuesday evening, blocking the Dhaka-Mymensingh railway line after a meeting with the Agriculture Secretary failed to meet their expectations regarding a six-point demand.
The demonstration began around 6:40 PM at Jabbarer Mor on the university campus and soon moved to the nearby railway track. Although no trains were stopped at the BAU station due to the protest, several hundred students took part, chanting slogans such as “Who are you? Who am I? Agronomist! Agronomist!” and “Agriculturists in action, direct action!”
The blockade continued until approximately 8:48 PM, when students withdrew following requests from the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) and university officials.
Wasim Akram, a fourth-year student, criticized the current professional classification system, saying, “In this country, diploma holders claim to be engineers, nurses identify as doctors, and those with agricultural diplomas call themselves agriculturists. If our demands are not addressed, we are prepared to shut down all agricultural universities nationwide.”
Earlier in the day, representatives from the Krishibid Oikya Parishad met with Agriculture Secretary Dr. Mohammad Emdad Ullah Mian from 4 PM to 6 PM. Students said the talks failed to yield any satisfactory outcome. A memorandum was later submitted to the secretary, reiterating their six-point charter of demands.
Nazmul Alam, a BAU student and a member of the Krishibid Oikya Parishad, stated that the secretary advised them to engage with the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh (KIB) for further negotiations.
The students’ key demands include:
1. Reserving 10th-grade positions (such as Sub-Assistant Agriculture Officer/Scientific Officer) in DAE, BADC, and other institutions exclusively for agriculture graduates.
2. Regular promotion and review processes in the 9th and other grades.
3. Ensuring no promotion to the 9th grade without a recruitment exam and abolishing the BADC quota.
4. Halting the establishment of specialized agricultural universities for diploma holders.
5. Reserving the title “Krishibid” (Agriculturist) solely for graduates of agriculture-related disciplines and issuing a government circular to that effect.
6. Keeping diploma-level agricultural education under the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
The students warned of escalating protests, including a nationwide shutdown of agricultural universities, if their demands remain unmet.
