Students of different polytechnic institutions staged a sit-in in front of the Chattogram Press Club on Monday, pressing for a six-point demand.
They warned of a hunger strike if their demands are not met.
The students have been demonstrating for the past few days, opposing a 30 per cent promotion quota allocated for craft instructors under the junior instructor post. They claimed the policy undermined the quality and integrity of technical education.
As part of the ongoing movement, students of Chattogram Polytechnic Institute boycotted classes and examinations on Monday and began demonstrating on the campus in the morning.
By noon, they marched to the Jamal Khan area and gathered in front of the Chattogram Press Club, occupying one side of the busy two-way street and chanting slogans.
The sit-in caused significant traffic disruption, with one side of the road completely blocked.
According to the protesters, craft instructors lack the necessary technical background, as most of them have educational qualifications up to the Grade 8 or SSC level and primarily serve as lab assistants.
Appointing them as teachers would deprive students of proper technical education, they claimed.
Tawkir Ahmed, Chattogram divisional coordinator of the Technical Students鈥� Movement, said, 鈥楢s diploma engineers from polytechnic institutes, we are being treated with discrimination. Despite repeated appeals, the authorities continue to ignore our legitimate concerns. If technical education is to be protected, these demands must be addressed immediately. Our movement will continue until the demands are met.鈥�
Students of different polytechnic institutions in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country held rallies in their respective areas as they continued their protests for the fifth day on Sunday to press home their six-point demand and protest at the attack on students in Cumilla.聽
The protesters, from their rallies at places in the country, threatened to hold long marches towards Dhaka if their demands were not met within the next 48 hours.
Their six-point demands include the cancelation of a High Court verdict that allows the promotion of craft instructors to junior instructors.