Most of the government and private offices in the capital, including the secretariat, had little activities on Tuesday, the second working day after the Eid holiday ending on Sunday, because of thin attendance.
Officials of different ministries housed in the secretariat said about 70 per cent of the officials were present as many were still on leave on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr, which celebrated on Saturday.
Senior officials attended office at the secretariat in a ‘relaxed mood.’ There were hardly any visitors to the administrative headquarters, which looked deserted as did other city areas. A few vehicles were parked inside the secretariat complex.
The main entrance to the secretariat which usually remains crowded also looked deserted.
As two-thirds of the Eid holiday fell this time at the weekend, Friday and Saturday, some officials and employees from districts far away took casual leave either before or after Eid to celebrate the festival with their family.
‘The presence of officials and employees is thin today after Eid as people who left the city for village homes were yet to return. A number of officials have taken leave this year as the Eid holiday fell at the weekend,’ a senior official told New Age on Tuesday.
The offices are unlikely to return to normal activities until Sunday, he said.
Many officials and employees either exchanged Eid greetings or gossiped during office hours.
Attendance in other government, semi-government and autonomous offices, banks and private commercial establishments was also thin. City roads were almost deserted and rickshaws plied the VIP roads.
Bus and launch terminals and railway stations had been crowded since Monday morning as people who left the capital started returning to Dhaka. Most shops in the city also remained closed on Tuesday.
The holiday hangover in government and semi-government offices is likely to persist today and tomorrow, officials said.
