The government on Saturday announced two days’ general holidays on Sunday and Monday for ensuring public safety amid the ongoing violent protests across the country.
The announcement came followed by another government decision of imposing a countrywide curfew from midnight past Friday for an indefinite period, with a break for two-hours initially from 12:00 noon on Saturday.
The public administration minister Farhad Hossain told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· on Saturday evening that all government, semi-government, autonomous, semi-autonomous and non-government institutions would remain closed on Sunday and Monday.
‘The emergency services, including hospitals, telecom, fire services and media, will be out the purview of the public holidays,’ he said and added that the judiciary and the banking sector would take decision regarding the general holidays on their own.
Replying to a question, the minister said that the decision was taken to ensure public safety.
The decision was also taken to save properties of the state as different government establishments were being attacked across the country amid the ongoing protests, he added.
The decisions were taken when at least 112 people were killed, mostly in Dhaka, in July 16-19 while staging protests demanding reformation of quota in government job.
Several thousand people were injured during the protests.
Clashes erupted between protesters and law enforcers accompanied by ruling Awami League activists in capital and many other places across the country. Since Thursday (July 18) a complete shutdown is being enforced across the country by Students’ Movement against Discrimination, a platform of anti-quota protesters.