Students with 9-point demand observing hunger strike in front of Secretariat

Students of various schools and colleges observed hunger strike in front of the Secretariat in Dhaka today, to press home their nine-point demand.

The students announced yesterday in a statement that they will go for hunger strike today with their nine-point demand, which includes road safety and justice for road accident victims.

"We gave the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority a five-day ultimatum through a memorandum on November 24, but the bus owners accepted half fare first in Dhaka city and then in all metropolitan cities," said the statement.

"We later gave another deadline on December 10 to issue a gazette notification on half fare on all modes of public transport across the country by Tuesday and to begin implementing our other demands," added the statement.

On December 13, students protesting for safe roads said that the gazette notification on half bus fare was "unrealistic".

The students hit the streets on November 18 after bus fares were raised following a hike in diesel price. The demonstration later got bigger and called for road safety after two students were killed in the capital by recklessly driven vehicles.