The national committee to protect oil, gas, mineral resources, power and ports is gearing up for a ‘long march’ from Dhaka to Phulbari-Barapukuria in late October.
The long march will start from Dhaka on October 24 and end in Barapukuria on October 30.
Processions from across the country are expected join the march, the member secretary of the national committee, Anu Muhammad told New Age on Tuesday evening.
The long march has been planned to press home the demand for implementation of the Phulbar agreement signed on August 30 by then BNP- led government and the oil gas committee in the wake of a mass upsurge in

Phulbari against a planned open-pit mining of coal.
The police fired on a protest rally in Phulbari on August 26, 2006 and killed three people.
The six-point agreement included cancellation of the coal extraction deal with the multinational company Asia Energy, closing the company’s operation in Bangladesh and no coal extraction using open-pit method in the country.

The Awami League-led government is yet to implement the agreement.
The national committee has held a series of preparatory meeting with its district committees in Tangail, Sirajganj, Bogra, Gaibandha, Joypurhat, Natore, Dinajpur, Rangpur, Kurigram, Jessore, Khulna, Barisal, Faridpur and Gazipur, Anu Muhammad said.

Bogra, Rangpur and Dinajpur are considered as the coal zone and till date 13 coal basins have been discovered in the area, he said.
Moreover, five coal mines in Jamalganj, Barapukuria, Phulbari, Khalapir and Dighipara have been discovered, Anu said.
The national committee will exchange views with different professional, cultural and social organisations in September 20-October 2 and hold cultural programmes, street dramas, film shows and photo exhibitions before the ‘long march’.

The national committee held Dhaka-Coxe’s Bazar road march in the middle of last year.
Earlier it held Dhaka-Mongla, Dhaka-Chittagong and Dhaka-Tangratila march to press various demands.