Desk Report: Khelafat Majlis has expressed deep concern over the ongoing labour unrest and mounting crisis in Bangladesh's readymade garment (RMG) sector, urging the government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure a sustainable solution through dialogue between factory owners and workers.In a statement issued on Monday (November 2), the party's Ameer Maulana Abdul Basit Azad and Secretary General Dr Ahmad Abdul Quader called for urgent government intervention to restore stability in the country's vital export-oriented industry. The leaders said labour protests, vandalism and highway blockades in different parts of the country had forced owners to keep more than 500 garment factories closed, raising serious concerns about production, employment and export earnings. They pointed out that factory owners were already struggling with inadequate and uninterrupted electricity supplies, high fuel prices and rising production costs. At the same time, workers were facing mounting financial pressures due to higher house rents, soaring prices of essential commodities and increased transportation and medical expenses. As a result, both workers and factory owners were confronting growing economic difficulties, further aggravating tensions across the industry, they observed. Warning of more serious consequences, the Khelafat Majlis leaders said failure to find a sustainable solution quickly could prolong the unrest and create a situation in which factories might remain closed for an extended period. They urged the government to immediately initiate the process of the Minimum Wage Board in consultation with representatives of factory owners and workers to address labour grievances and establish a mutually acceptable solution. The party leaders also called for identifying and taking appropriate action against any vested quarters or instigators, whether operating inside or outside the country, if they were found to be involved in fuelling the unrest. Emphasising the importance of the RMG sector to Bangladesh's economy, they said a lasting resolution required addressing workers' legitimate demands while taking into account the operational challenges faced by factory owners.  They urged the government to act promptly and responsibly to protect workers' livelihoods, safeguard industrial production and restore stability in the country's largest export-earning sector.