The injured teachers were taken to the emergency department of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH). Confirming the incident, Md. Faruk, inspector-in-charge of the DMCH police camp, said, “A total of 120 injured primary school teachers were brought to the emergency unit. Many are undergoing treatment, while some have already left after receiving first aid.”
According to witnesses, the clash erupted around 3:30 p.m. when police fired sound grenades and charged batons as the teachers attempted to take position at Shahbagh intersection. Earlier in the day, the teachers held a sit-in at the Central Shaheed Minar before announcing their “pen abandonment program.” When they began marching toward Shahbagh with their demands, police intercepted them. The situation quickly escalated, prompting police to disperse the crowd using force. Many teachers reportedly took shelter inside Dhaka University premises afterward.
The teachers’ key demands include upgrading the salary of assistant teachers to the 10th grade, resolving complications in higher grade promotion after 10 and 16 years of service, and ensuring 100 percent departmental promotions.
According to the Directorate of Primary Education, Bangladesh currently has 65,567 government primary schools employing about 384,000 teachers. On April 24, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education initiated a move to raise the salaries of head teachers from the 11th to the 10th grade and from the 13th to the 12th grade. However, assistant teachers were excluded from this benefit, sparking widespread resentment among them.
Meanwhile, another faction of assistant teachers under the banner of Primary Assistant Teachers Organization Oikya Parishad has issued a separate ultimatum to the government. The group has demanded an 11th-grade pay scale, resolution of higher grade complications, and full departmental promotions by November 15.
Failing to meet their demands, the organization announced a series of protest programs including a half-day strike on November 23 and 24, a full-day strike on November 25 and 26, and a sit-in in front of the Directorate of Primary Education on November 27.
The group also warned of boycotting examinations and launching a hunger strike to death if no visible progress is made by December 11.
