Ctg students protest against discrimination in engineering profession

Students from various universities staged protest marches and rallies in Chattogram today (5 July), demanding an end to what they describe as long-standing discrimination against BSc engineering graduates in government recruitment and promotion processes.

The demonstration began at the city's Gate No-2 area at 4pm, with participants from Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET), Chittagong University (CU), International Islamic University Chittagong (IIUC), and other institutions.

During this time, protesters marched through the GEC intersection and returned to their starting point.

Carrying placards and chanting slogans such as "No place for discrimination in my golden Bengal," "Quota or merit? — Merit, merit," "Discrimination in the name of quota — No more," and "What we need now — Reform of the quota system," the students voiced strong opposition to what they claim is an unfair quota structure in the public engineering sector.

At the rally following the march, student representatives presented a set of three demands-  mandatory competitive exams for all candidates seeking recruitment as assistant engineers (Grade-9), which is currently restricted to BSc engineering graduates only, opening the position of deputy assistant engineer (Grade-10) or equivalent posts to all candidates, regardless of academic background, and enacting legislation to prohibit the use of the title "engineer" by anyone who does not hold a BSc in engineering, followed by official gazette notification.

According to the students, BSc graduates are consistently disadvantaged in recruitment and promotion due to the dominance of diploma engineers in key positions.

Despite completing a four-year program involving rigorous coursework, labs, theses, and projects, BSc engineers are being sidelined in the job market, they claimed.

They also alleged that nearly all Grade-10 positions in government services are exclusively occupied by diploma holders, and 33.3% of Grade-9 posts are reserved for them.

There are even efforts underway to raise this quota to 50%, the students added.

Shakil Ahmad Iqbal, joint convener of the Engineers' Rights Movement, said, "We had to take to the streets last year for the same reason. Less than a year later, we're back on the street again. Diploma holders are not just claiming their reserved quota — they are occupying 100% of Grade-9 posts in many cases, which is unacceptable."

Shakibul Haque Lipu, another organiser, added, "Diploma holders do not possess BSc degrees, yet they are being appointed to positions meant for graduate engineers. After working so hard for four years to earn this degree, this kind of discrimination is simply intolerable."

Aminul Islam, a CUET student, said, "After learning how to calculate the area of an equilateral triangle, diploma holders are getting engineering posts, while we, after completing a complex four-year program, are being denied even the opportunity to apply. They are occupying equivalent positions without even sitting for the BCS exam."

Another student, Mahfuzur Rahman Mohabbat, alleged that diploma holders are using lobbying and muscle power to gain illegal promotions and that positions are being created outside the rules to accommodate them.

The protesters urged the government to take immediate steps to address the issue, noting that similar protests are taking place in other parts of the country as well, reflecting a growing call for equity and recognition in the engineering profession.