Staff Correspondent

Students from Titumir College have begun blocking the road in front of the institution to demand it be converted by the government into a university. Alongside the blockade, some students are also continuing a hunger strike.

The students blocked off the road in front of the college in Dhaka’s Mohakhali around 4:30pm on Saturday.

Protest leader Nayek Noor Mohammad said, "We had previously announced that if the conversion into a university was not declared by 4 pm today, we will block the road in the [Dhaka] North City Corporation area."

"As part of this programme, we have now blocked the road in front of the campus. More students are coming. Later we can block roads in Mohakhali, Gulshan and even the road to the airport in the [Dhaka] North City Corporation area."

A spokesman for the Ministry of Education sent out a media statement on Saturday afternoon saying that the government is aware of the ongoing movement demanding the conversion of Titumir College, but said that it was not reasonable for protests to be held if the process was not completed by the deadline of 4pm.

The education ministry said that an expert committee formed under the leadership of the University Grants Commission chairman is working to form a separate university by combining the seven government colleges in Dhaka. Special attention is being paid to the matter of Government Titumir College, the statement said.

"This committee has already started discussions with the student representatives of seven colleges, including Titumir College, on their issues. The main goal of the government is currently to improve educational facilities and the quality of these colleges. All the possible options to be taken in this regard will be under the government's consideration. In this situation, it is not reasonable to hold a movement with a time limit to achieve the announcement of the conversion of Titumir College into a university,” the statement said.

“Therefore, all those involved in the movement are requested to be patient. The protesters are urged to refrain from programmes that create suffering for the public or disrupt the regular educational activities of ordinary students of the college."

The statement added that the government is always aware and sympathetic to reasonable demands of teachers and students from all walks of life.

Students of Titumir College have been protesting for a long time demanding the institution receive state recognition as a university.

The student movement, conducted under the Titumir Oikyo banner, has seven key demands.

These include publishing an academic calendar with state recognition, the formation of a “university administration” to conduct admissions for the 2024-25 sessions, and immediate cover for the housing costs of all students or ensuring housing arrangements for all of them.

The students on a hunger strike are also demanding the addition of international-standard Law and Journalism subjects from the 2024-25 academic session, the appointment of qualified teachers with PhDs to conduct academic activities, limiting the number of seats to improve the quality of education, and ensuring land and financial allocations for building a research laboratory of international standards.

On Monday night, student protesters gave the authorities 48 hours to turn the college into a university and form an administrative structure following the transition. After the deadline passed, they announced new protests on Thursday.

That day the students had blocked the same stretch of road from noon until dawn, sparking severe traffic congestion in the surrounding areas. The disruptions created significant hardship for thousands of commuters.

Around 9pm on Thursday, Md Nuruzzaman, joint secretary of the education ministry, engaged with the protesters gathered in front of Titumir College’s main gate.

Despite his assurances that their demands would be presented to senior government officials, the students remained resolute in their stance. Although they vacated the road early Friday morning, some continued their hunger strike.

The hunger strike rolled into its fourth day on Saturday.

After months of protests and sit-ins demanding an independent university, the students hoisted a banner reading "Titumir University" at the main gate of the educational institution on Jan 7.

Earlier, the education ministry formed a five-strong committee to examine the feasibility of transforming the college into a university on Dec 3, 2024.

However, the students allege that the committee was not functioning “properly”.