Demanding opportunities for higher education along with eight other demands, agricultural diploma students are holding a rally and sit-in protest in front of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) at Khamarbari in Dhaka.
On Monday from 9am, under the banner of the Agricultural Diploma Student Rights Movement, students were seen blocking all the gates of the Department of Agricultural Extension and staging a demonstration.
It has been observed that no staff or officials are being allowed to enter the premises. Everyone is waiting outside after arriving at the office. Due to the gate being closed for the protest, traffic congestion has occurred on the road.
Asaduzzaman Abir, a participating student in the sit-in program, said:“In the country, there are about 25,000 students enrolled in a four-year diploma course in 18 government Agricultural Training Institutes and 260 private agricultural colleges. These students face discrimination in employment and higher education opportunities.”
Earlier, on Sunday, agricultural diploma students also held a rally and sit-in program in front of the National Shaheed Minar with the same demands.
Students from agricultural diploma programs across the country participated in that program. Later, from that protest, the demonstrators announced the “Agri Blockade” program to be held on Monday.
The demands of the protesting students are as follows: Diploma agriculturists must be given the opportunity to pursue higher education at public agricultural universities. The post of sub-assistant agricultural Officer must be declared a second-class position and a gazette notification must be issued accordingly, and the continuity of annual recruitment must be maintained. The shortage of teachers must be addressed to improve the quality of agricultural diploma education.
Additionally, they demand that agricultural diploma education be removed from under the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) and brought entirely under the Ministry of Agriculture, the post of assistant scientific officer in all agricultural research institutions must be reserved exclusively for diploma agriculturists, diploma agriculturists must be paid a salary equivalent to at least the 10th grade pay scale in private jobs, agricultural diploma students must be provided with field attachment allowances, and there must be arrangements for six months of foundation training after appointment to the post of sub-assistant agricultural officer.
