BNP Jamaat Terrorists Out To Hold Back Progress In Education

Besides, the ongoing blockade played havoc with education with most of the institutions, from primary schools to universities, failing to hold classes properly, and resulting in changes in exam schedule. Moreover, the young learners' preparations were ruined and the students had to go through undue mental pressure.

Turning a blind eye to the pleas of guardians of nearly 15 lakh students and the education minister to withdraw the blockade for SSC examinations, this year, just two days before the scheduled beginning of Secondary School Certificate examination, the 20 party combine announced a countrywide 72-hour strike. As the government rescheduled the exams, the alliance again called a countrywide shutdown for five days, coinciding with English 1st Paper and English 2nd Paper exam dates. And worries remained for all SSC examinees and their guardians over any further announcement of extending the blockade during the exams.

However, defying all odds, two papers of the Secondary School Certificate and equivalent examinations were held peacefully amid tight security.

To ward off the fear of violence among candidates and their parents, policemen stood guard at the centres while members of the elite Rapid Action Battalion also remained vigilant on the lanes, roads and streets around. The government, according to media reports, had deployed 326 platoons of BGB (about 10,000) members across the country to ensure security of the examinees. The Awami League led government has assured the public of ensuring highest level of security during the next exam days.

Unruly activists of BNP Jamaat do not even spare Books

Now the books of schoolchildren have become the target for BNP Jamaat blockaders. A truck carrying around 38,000 books of pre-primary students came under a bomb attack on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway in Gazaria upazila of Munshiganj on February 9 that left almost all the books damaged.

Quoting Farid Hossain, manager of Shuktara Transport Agency, several media reported, 37,808 books were loaded onto the truck from a printing press in Dhaka. It left for Laxmipur around 4:00am. The books were to be distributed among students in Roypur, Ramgati and Kamalnagar upazilas for free. When the truck reached near Jamaldi Bus Stop in Gazaria upazila around 5:30am, a petrol bomb was hurled at it, but the bomb did not blast. A second bomb was thrown at the vehicle, putting it on fire.

Some 10 percent books were burned, but almost all of the rest were damaged when firefighters doused the flames with water. Printers were supposed to supply all the pre-primary level books to the upazilas within January 16, but several of them missed the deadline due to the ongoing blockade.

BNP-Jamaat men burnt schools in 2014

More than 80,000 students of 568 educational institutions, which were burnt or vandalised by BNP-Jamaat activists the day before the January 5 election last year, had to attend their classes with debris around for some days.
Of the total, 443 are primary schools, 113 secondary institutions including some madrasas and the rest are colleges, according to government data. Almost all these institutions, in more than 20 districts, were designated as polling centres.
Later, the government has assessed the extent of damage and probable repair cost based on reports from the grassroots and repaired the burnt schools.