Staff Reporter :
Students of various engineering institutions, including Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), took to the streets on Tuesday afternoon, blocking the Shahbag intersection in the capital to press home a three-point demand.
The protesters, numbering several hundred, began the blockade around 3:00 pm, halting traffic at one of Dhaka’s busiest intersections and triggering severe congestion on surrounding roads, police said.
Their key demands include barring diploma engineers from using the title “engineer” before their names, preventing diploma engineers from being promoted to the ninth grade, and ensuring that graduate engineers are given entry-level opportunities for 10th-grade government jobs.
Speaking to journalists at the demonstration, Shahbag police station officer-in-charge (OC) Khalid Monsur confirmed that the blockade led to long tailbacks, with vehicles stranded on nearby streets for hours.
During the protest, leaders of the Prokoushol Odhikar Andolon (Engineering Rights Movement) accused the government of ignoring their demands despite repeated calls over the past six months.
Shakil Ahmed, the group’s vice president, issued an ultimatum: “We are giving time until 8:00 tonight. The interim government must come here and sit with us to resolve this issue. Otherwise, we will be forced to announce tougher programs.”
He further alleged that government inaction had compelled them to take to the streets. “We have been appealing for months, but nothing was done. That is why we are now on the roads,” Ahmed told reporters.
Students also expressed anger over recent intimidation incidents. BUET student Abrar Faiyaz said, “We were continuing our movement with three demands. But last night in Rangpur, a graduate engineer was confined and threatened in various ways.
Although a case has been filed, the perpetrators have not been arrested. We will continue our movement until our three demands are realised and those who threatened the graduate engineers are arrested.”
The blockade, which involved students from BUET as well as several private engineering universities, continued into the evening. Chants and slogans demanding “justice for graduate engineers” echoed across Shahbag as students vowed to escalate their movement unless the authorities intervened within the deadline.
As of late evening, traffic diversions remained in place, and commuters struggled to navigate alternative routes. Officials said efforts were underway to open dialogue with the demonstrators to restore normalcy.
