Staff Reporter :
The indefinite strike enforced by the vessel workers on Tuesday midnight continued for the second consecutive day on Wednesday. As the strike continued, the passengers underwent unbearable sufferings being left in the lurch at the launch terminals across the country.
Only a small number of vessels left Sadarghat terminal yesterday. Most of the river vessels, including launches, and goods, sand and oil-laden ones, stayed off the waterways as usual. Particularly, no cargo vessels left the terminal defying the strike.
The strike, enforced jointly by Bangladesh Water Transport Workers Federation and Bangladesh River Vessel Workers Federation, began at 12:01am on Tuesday. To dissolve the trouble, Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan sat in a meeting with the leaders of Bangladesh Water Transport Workers Federation at Labour Directorate in the city at 8:00pm.
Officials concerned of the Shipping Ministry and Labour Ministry were present at the meeting. It was going on till time of filing of this report at 9:45pm yesterday.
Before attending the meeting, General Secretary of Bangladesh Water Transport Workers Federation Chowdhury Ashiqul Alam said the strike will continue until their demands were met. On the other hand, shipping minister Shajahan Khan hoped that the vessel workers would withdraw their strike soon.
Witnesses said some passenger vessels were seen departing from Sadarghat Launch Terminal. BIWTA Transport Inspector Dinesh Kumar Das said some passenger vessels left Sadarghat.
But no passenger vessel left the terminal during the first half of the first day of the strike. Four passenger launches left for Chandpur, Barisal, Sureshwar and Muladi on Wednesday morning while many more were preparing for departure.
