‘Budget fails to protect interests of million workers’

Demanding necessary revisions Rickshaw-Van-Easy Bike Workers’ Union on Friday criticised the proposed national budget for the 2026�"27 financial year, saying it fails to protect the interests of the country’s millions of low-income people.

In a joint statement, the union’s President Abdul Quddus and General Secretary Abdul Hakim Maizbhandari expressed their joint concerns over what they described as ‘government neglect of more than seven million drivers of rickshaws, vans, and battery-powered easy bikes, as well as nearly 30 million people’ who depend on their daily incomes.

“This budget cannot be considered worker-friendly when such a large segment of the labour force has been ignored,” the statement said.

Union leaders were critical of the absence of measures to register and license battery-powered vehicles and the lack of adequate allocations for social protection programmes targeting informal transport workers.

They said rising prices of essential commodities have pushed rickshaw and van drivers into severe financial hardships, while the budget contains no meaningful support through the social safety net.

The statement further noted that key demands including affordable rationing, emergency medical assistance for workers injured or falling ill on the job, and low-cost urban housing were not addressed.

The union also expressed frustration at the government’s failure to establish a formal registration framework for battery-powered rickshaws, vans, and easy bikes, arguing such a system will generate revenue for the state while reducing harassment of drivers by local authorities, police, and extortion networks.

The organisation urged the government to revise the budget and implement the Electric Three-Wheeler Management Policy without delay, and called on the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) to introduce vehicle registration and driver licensing at nominal fees.

The union further demanded a dedicated social protection fund, permanent ration cards for workers, an end to police harassment, and increased incentives for environment-friendly battery productions.