Metro rail services to shut down from Friday

Dhaka’s metro rail services are set to come to a standstill from 7:00am on Friday (December 12), as employees of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) declare an indefinite work stoppage over the non-publication of long-pending service rules.

In a statement issued on Wednesday (December 10), the employees said they would also stage a daily peaceful sit-in in front of the DMTCL headquarters until the independent service regulations are officially released.

More than a decade after DMTCL’s establishment in 2013, service rules for its 900-plus officers and staff remain incomplete. Despite the launch of metro rail operations on 28 December 2022 and continuous service from newly recruited employees, staff say they are still being denied basic employment benefits — including leave, CPF, gratuity, shift allowances or overtime, and group insurance.

Employees claim the authorities had committed to finalising the rules within 60 working days after September 12, 2024, following recommendations from the advisory committee. After employee protests on February 13, 2025, the deadline was extended again, with a renewed pledge to complete the rules by March 20. But staff say repeated assurances have yielded no progress, fuelling growing resentment.

The key point of contention, they allege, lies in Chapter 11: “Special Provisions.” This section reportedly contains a proposal to absorb personnel from the metro rail project into the DMTCL structure — a move employees argue contradicts national laws and Supreme Court rulings. They say the Board of Directors is itself unwilling to keep this provision, yet pressure from DMTCL authorities has stalled the release of the full service rules.

The employees have warned that unless the rules are published by December 11, they will enforce a total operational shutdown the following morning.

The suspension is expected to disrupt daily travel for hundreds of thousands of commuters, but staff maintain that “the responsibility lies squarely with DMTCL authorities.”

“Without formal service rules, our rights and basic entitlements remain uncertain,” employees said in their statement. “We will accept no further promises — only the published service rules can resolve this crisis.”