Workers of Beximco Industrial Park in Gazpiur continued their protests for the sixth day on Wednesday demanding their arrears.
Police and witnesses said that several hundred workers from industries of the Beximco Group blocked the Dhaka-Tangail Highway at Chakrabarti in front of the industrial park to press home their demand in the morning.
Earlier on Tuesday, the government decided to approve a Tk 60 crore loan for the group to pay salaries and allowances of the company鈥檚 workers and employees for the month of October.
The workers, however, said that they were given assurances several times earlier this month but they were not paid so far.
On Tuesday, the management also promised to give arrears, but the workers returned to their houses without any payment.
Officer-in-charge of the Kashimpur police station, Md Saiful Islam, said that they requested the workers to clear the highway to ease public sufferings and assured them of giving their payment within days but the workers continued their blockade.
The workers said that they would withdraw their blockade only after they were given their payment.
Officials said that the Ministry of Labour and Employment and the Finance Division of the finance ministry decided to provide the loan jointly following a meeting with the Beximco officials at the secretariat on Tuesday.
Confirming the development, labour secretary AHM Shafiquzzaman said that a decision was taken to provide a loan to the Beximco Group to clear the pending salaries and allowances of its workers and employees.
He also requested the protesting workers to return to their work for the sake of law and order and to maintain a stable production in all factories in the Ashulia-Chandra area.
About 40,000 workers work in the 24 factories under the Beximco Group. The group, however, has not been able to import raw materials following the regime change as the group is a loan defaulter.