The protesting tea workers of the state-owned National Tea Company have shut the Madhabpur Lake, located inside the Madhabpur Tea Garden, at Kamalganj in Moulvibazar.
They have not been allowing tourists and people of the area to enter the lake since Wednesday morning.
Workers of 16 tea gardens across the country, including the NTC, have been on an indefinite strike since October 20, demanding arrears of wages.
鈥榃e will not join work unless we receive due wages,鈥� they said, adding that no tourists would be allowed to enter these gardens.
Laxman Barai, a Madhabpur Tea Garden worker, said that they were not able to run their families due to the indefinite strike for not receiving their due wages.
鈥榃e have been on an indefinite strike. Our workers cannot put food on the table. How long will we continue the strike?鈥�
He also mentioned that when tourists entered the lake, they had to pay for tickets. 鈥楢nd the owner gets the money. Which is why, we are not allowing tourists to enter the lake.鈥�
Naeem Hossain, a tourist from Chattogram, said, 鈥業 came to visit the lake with my family. Now, I see that the road to the lake has been closed.鈥�
Dhana Bauri, president of the Manu Dhalai Valley of the Bangladesh Tea Workers Union, mentioned that the workers had not been getting wages for the past three months.
鈥楾he workers have been living a miserable life. As they are on strike, there is a security concerns at the lake,鈥� he added.
Kamalganj upazila nirbahi officer Joynal Abedin said, 鈥業 have heard that workers have shut Madhabpur Lake for tourists. I am trying to resolve the issue by discussing with local leaders and workers.鈥�