The MPO-listed teachers, who were protesting in demand of nationalisation, have vacated the road after receiving assurance from Education Adviser Chowdhury Rafiqul Abrar that their house rent and medical allowances would be increased, issuing the interim government a one-month ultimatum.
A 12-member delegation of teachers on Wednesday went to the Secretariat and met with the education adviser.
After the meeting around 3:45 pm, Delwar Hossain Azizi, the general secretary of the "Alliance for the Nationalisation of MPO-listed Education," said, "If our demands are not met within one month, (September 14), all MPO-listed schools, madrasas, and technical institutions across the country will observe a half-day strike, followed by a full-day strike on September 15 and 16."
Azizi also said that if their demands are still not met, they will wait another month and then launch a continuous sit-in in front of the National Press Club from October 12.
"The ministry has informed us that a due letter has been sent to increase the house rent for MPO-listed teachers and staff from 50% to 75%. The ministry has agreed to our demands. They stated that it is not possible to fulfil all the demands at once," he added.
"We will discuss with the Finance Ministry the amount of funds required to meet these demands. We have proposed that our house rent should be increased as a percentage of the basic pay."
"The ministry has informed us that a 20% increase in house rent will be sent to the Finance Ministry. The medical allowance will be increased from 500 to 1,000 taka," he further said.
Earlier, the same day, teachers and staff from MPO-listed educational institutions across the country staged a rally in front of the capital's Press Club, demanding nationalisation.
The rally began around 10:00am in the morning under the banner of the Alliance for the Nationalisation of MPO-listed Education, blocking off a portion of the road.
Traffic movement on both sides of the road has come to a halt, resulting in severe congestion in the surrounding areas, including Paltan, Gulistan, and Kakrail.
Speaking to Stream, Md Shafiqul Islam, deputy commissioner of traffic (Ramna Zone), said, "The press club area remains blocked due to the ongoing movement. While the north-south routes are open, the east-west section was partially closed until 3:30pm. We are making every effort to restore traffic flow as soon as possible."
Teachers, who were attending the rally, said they have only one demand: all MPO-listed educational institutions must be brought under nationalisation. Otherwise, they will announce even tougher programmes.
An "MPO institution" refers to a non-government educational institution that receives a Monthly Pay Order (MPO) from the government.
Mohammad Azad Ali, head teacher of Baneshwar Islamia High School in Rajshahi, told Stream, "We receive our salaries according to the government's national pay scale, but our house rent allowance is only Tk1,000. The medical allowance is just Tk500. The festival allowance is 50% of the basic scale.
"If these allowances were provided in the same manner as government employees, it would somewhat ease our inhumane living conditions."
In comparison, he said MPO institutions' teachers receive 45% for house rent and Tk1,500 for medical allowance.
"We were promised a recreation allowance by former Education Adviser Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud, but we're still waiting."
Among other demands of the protesters are 100% festival allowance and recreation allowance in line with government rules, as well as a universal transfer system.
Protesters also warned of continuous movement if a notification is not issued soon.
Meanwhile, a 10-member delegation of teachers has gone to the Secretariat for discussion.
Speaking to Stream, Abdus Sabur from Syed Bazlul Haque College emphasised, "Nationalisation is our primary demand. If that's not feasible now, we at least want allowances comparable to those of government employees."
Anil Sarker, an assistant teacher from Bhagyakul Harendralal School and College in Munshiganj, expressed his disappointment: "I competed with 1.2 million others for my job, but now I earn only Tk12,000-12,500 per month. It's disheartening."
He warned that if conditions persist, talented individuals will avoid teaching and seek other income sources, ultimately harming education and hindering the country's progress.
Alliance leaders reminded that earlier this year, in February, they began a continuous sit-in. On the 22nd day, the education adviser announced an increase of 25% in festival allowance and promised that house rent, medical, and recreation allowances would be included in the next budget.
The funds were allocated — but no government order has been issued yet.
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