Online Desk :  Academic and administrative activities at public universities across the country remain halted as the indefinite strike by teachers protesting the ‘Prattay pension scheme’ enters its fifth consecutive day. Dr. Nizamul Haque Bhuiyan, Secretary General of the University Teachers Association Federation and President of the Dhaka University Teachers Association, emphasized their commitment to the protest. They will continue the movement until their demands are met, he told UNB’s Dhaka University correspondent. Criticizing the Universal Pension Scheme, Dr. Bhuiyan described it as discriminatory. This pension scheme facilitates some people while depriving others. It is an affront to the teachers’ dignity and has forced them to seriously reconsider their financial futures, he said. A scheduled meeting between Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader and leaders of the University Teachers Association Federation, planned for last Thursday, was canceled.

Quader, who also serves as the Minister for Road Transport and Bridges, said today that the government is closely monitoring the teachers’ movement and expressed hope for a swift resolution. He made the remark while speaking to reporters at the Secretariat in Dhaka. The university teachers’ indefinite strike began on July 1.