Communication Minister Obaidul Quader is anxious about the 48 hour general strike called by the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh from August 13. He believes Jamaat would withdraw the hartal considering the inconvenience of people returning to the capital after Eid holiday.
The minister expressed his anxiety while talking to journalists at his ministry conference room in the Secretariat on Sunday.
Jamaat called for the hartal on August 13 and 14 protesting the high court verdict declaring the registration of the party with Election Comission illegal.
“We fear that the upcoming hartal would cause severe traffic congestion on roads tomorrow as a number of vehicles might start plying before hartal. We are trying to keep the roads free from traffic congestion as much as possible. But, we believe Jamaat will withdraw their hartal considering the suffering of the people,” said Obaidul Quader.
Terming the traffic free roads during Eid-ul-fitr as a ‘success of the government,’ the minister told: “We are satisfied with our attempts to ensure hassle-free movement of people during Eid. We have kept the roads safe and smooth for travelling.”
“Till the end of our tenure we will keep the roads under strong watch to ensure their stable condition. In the next two and a half months, we will try to reduce at least 2.5% suffering of the people regarding movement on roads,” he added.
The minister said: “We are monitoring the roads so people can return to their work places peacefully after celebrating Eid. We have given directives to the concerned authorities, transport owners and labour leaders to maintain the peaceful condition.”
Citing the success in annual development programme (ADP), he said the government have successfully implemented 99.5% of the ADP during last fiscal year and had been working to continue with the progress. They believed that more success would come in the next two and half months left to their tenure.
He informed reporters that 1,246 buses of the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) have carried 125,000 passengers during the Eid.
