The assistant primary teachers, who have been continuing an indefinite hunger strike in the capital since Saturday, got divided over calling off their agitation programme following assurance of the primary and mass education minister.
Agitating teachers instantly reacted to Primary and Mass Education Minister Mostafizur Rahman on Monday evening, as he said the teachers' wage issue will be resolved on the table, and there is no need to continue hunger strike.
"Our ministry will analyze the rationale of the teachers' demand, and then we will discuss it with other government bodies concerned," said the minister at Central Shaheed Minar.
The common teachers instantly protested the speech and started chanting slogans. The leaders of the agitating teachers tried to calm them.
Though the leaders left the Shaheed Minar, the common teachers were continuing their hunger strike during filing of this report at 7.00 pm.
Earlier, a delegation of agitating teachers held a meeting with the minister at his residence in the afternoon.
Teachers' leader Anisur Rahman said they agreed to call off the hunger strike, as the minister promised to resolve the issue.
But the teachers wanted a clear announcement from the minister.
Thousands of assistant teachers of the state-run primary schools began the hunger strike at the Central Shaheed Minar on Saturday with the demand of fixing the trained assistant teachers' grade next to the trained head teachers' grade.
The aggrieved teachers, under the banner of Bangladesh Primary Assistant Teachers' Grand Alliance, vowed not to return to respective workplaces until their demand for upgrading the salary scale is met.
At least 40 assistant primary teachers fell sick during their hunger strike till Monday.
Some of them were admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) while the rest took treatment from different private hospitals, Mohammad Samsuddin, a leader of the alliance told The Financial Express.
"We will continue the strike until our demand is met," he said.
Some 27 teachers fell ill till Sunday and were admitted to DMCH, he added.
There is a three-tier gap between the wage grades of the assistant teachers and the head teachers.
The trained assistant teachers get salary according to the 14th grade and the non-trained teachers according to the 15th grade, whereas the trained headmasters get salary as per the 11th grade.
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