Indians in Dhaka wait for peace to return as quota protests singe Bangladesh
Times of India | 19 July 2024
KOLKATA: Indians employed in Bangladesh are adhering to the govt's directive to stay indoors amidst demonstrations over a controversial job quota system. The protests, followed by the reinstatement of a 30% job quota for families of war veterans, have turned violent, resulting in university closures and heightened tension.
Anindo Banerjee, a resident of Kolkata and the head of content for an OTT platform in Bangladesh, resides in the upscale Gulshan I area in Dhaka, which has not yet been directly affected.Banerjee is working remotely, with all meetings being conducted online. "Most of the campuses are located far from Gulshan. I am in constant touch with many of my colleagues who reside in the university campus area. But there is a palpable tension everywhere," Banerjee said.
Musician Saqi Banerjee, whose father-in-law is a Muktijodhha, had shifted to Dhaka from Kolkata in 2019. "I am out of Dhaka now and living in our Dhamrai farmhouse. The internet is down. There are barricades at many places. But students are allowing anyone with a foreign passport to go to the airport without any hassle," Banerjee said.
A Kolkatan, who has been employed in Bangladesh for 12 and a half years, has also been working from home. "On Thursday morning, we received a notification from the Indian High Commission on our Telegram group. We have been advised to avoid travel and minimize our movement outside our living premises," he said from Dhaka.
This CEO of a tech firm has implemented a work-from-home policy on Thursday. "In the area where I live in Gulshan II, there are no issues. Mobile network is down, so we can only access the internet via WiFi. However, I have heard that Indians working in garments factories in Narayanganj, Gazipur and Sabar are facing difficulties," he added. An Indian national who relocated from Mumbai to Dhaka in 2008 and became the CEO of a garments factory, said: "It is the political manipulation of the situation that is creating problems."