100 factories shut in Ashulia fearing violence

At least 100 garments, knitting and packaging factories in Ashulia were shut for a day after workers staged demonstration on Monday demanding a pay hike.

The agitating workers also blocked the Dhaka-Tangail highway for four and a half hours till 1:30pm and vandalised at least 25 vehicles.

Police and witnesses and hundreds of workers of Artistic Design, a packaging factory of Ha-Meem Group located at Narasinghapur, went on a work abstention in the morning and started an agitation in front of the factory, demanding an increase in their salary.

As the workers took to the streets and blocked the highway around 9:00am, thousands of workers from garments, knitting and packaging factories on the highway stretching from Narasinghapur to Banglabazar joined the agitation, the sources said.

They vandalised at least 25 vehicles, which got stranded on the highway following the blockade, when police charges batons to free the road, leaving 10 people injured.

Later, the authorities of at least 100 factories declared their organisations shut for today.

Fayzur Rahman, deputy director of Industrial police, confirmed the incident.