Garment workers in Kaliakair, Gazipur, blocked the Dhaka–Tangail Highway on Tuesday, 27 October, demanding higher wages, allowances and bonuses. The demonstration halted traffic along an approximately five-kilometre stretch of the highway, leaving hundreds of passengers and other road users facing severe delays. A local garment factory, Sadma Textile, was also reportedly vandalised during the protest.
The unrest began at around 11 am when workers from several garment factories in the Mouchak area of Kaliakair upazila stopped work and gathered on the highway. They began demonstrating over their demands for improved pay and financial benefits, bringing traffic on the busy route to a standstill.
As the protest continued, some workers reportedly vandalised Sadma Textile. The demonstrators then blocked both directions of the Dhaka–Tangail Highway, preventing vehicles from moving freely and causing lengthy traffic queues. Passengers travelling by bus and private vehicles were among those affected, while other commuters struggled to reach their destinations.
The blockade disrupted movement along a key transport corridor linking Dhaka with areas to the north-west of the capital. The highway carries passenger and freight traffic, making any prolonged interruption particularly difficult for commuters and businesses that rely on the regular movement of people and goods.
The workers’ principal demands were for increases in wages, allowances and bonuses. However, the specific amount of the proposed wage increase and the details of any negotiations with factory management were not immediately available. It was also unclear whether the protest involved workers from all the factories where employees had stopped work or only some of them.
Shahidul Islam, officer-in-charge of Kaliakair Police Station, said discussions were under way with the protesting workers. He added that industrial police personnel were also heading to the scene to help bring the situation under control.
No immediate information was available on whether the discussions had produced an agreement or whether the workers had agreed to withdraw their blockade. The timing of the restoration of normal traffic also remained uncertain.
The incident highlights the wider consequences that industrial disputes can have when protests spill onto major roads. While the workers were seeking better financial terms, the reported factory vandalism and highway blockade added to the disruption, affecting commuters and other road users who were not directly involved in the dispute.
Authorities were working to manage the situation through discussions with the workers, although the immediate outcome of those efforts was not known at the time of reporting.
