Officials of 25 cadres under the Bangladesh Civil Service on Thursday held human chains in front of their work stations for a one-hour across the country demanding elimination of discrimination among the cadre services.
Also protesting at the public administration reform commission’s planned proposals, they vowed to continue their movement until their demands would be met.
Under the banner of Inter-Cadre Council to Eliminate Discrimination, the officials from all BCS cadres except administration observed the pre-scheduled protest between 11:00am and 12:00pm on Thursday.
The reform commission chief, Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury, on December 17 said that the commission would recommend individual service-oriented commissions like the Judicial Service Commission, for the health and education sectors and 50 per cent of the promotions to the position of deputy secretary be reserved for officials from the administration cadre and the rest would be filled from the 25 other cadres.
Protesting at these, the council leaders on December 21 said that BCS cadres other than administration considered the reform commission’s planned proposal ‘discriminatory’ and part of ‘conspiracy’.
Citing that the senior service pool must not be confined to any specific cadre, the release said, ‘The commission’s recommendations, if implemented, will create serious chaos in the civil services.’
Following a pre-plan, officials of different cadres were seen holding human chain programmes in front of their respective offices, including Shikkha Bhaban and Ganapurta Bhaban in the capital.
At Shikkha Bhaban, professor ABM Rezaul Karim, director general of the Department of Secondary and Higher Education under the education ministry, said that they had expressed solidarity with the demands to end all discriminations.
Many officials were seen standing on the premises of the bhaban stopping work during the period.
In front of Ganapurta Bhaban, the Public Works Department superintendent engineer Jamilur Rahman said that they would continue their movement until the demands would be met.
The council convener, Muhammad Mofizur Rahman, told New Age that officials of 25 cadres would hold a rally in Dhaka on January 4.
From there, next course of actions would be announced, he added.
Source: Newage