To commemorate the historic events of the July 2024 uprising, a one-minute symbolic internet blackout will take place at 9:00 PM on July 18. This gesture honors the moment when, on July 18, 2024, the then Awami League government abruptly shut down the internet nationwide in response to growing protests.
According to the official schedule released under the “July Reawakening” event series, the blackout will be accompanied by coordinated digital tributes across all government ministry social media platforms. A thematic musical composition titled Awaj Uda will be released alongside documentary films highlighting the stories of martyr families and reflections from July freedom fighters. The URLs to these contents will be shared via SMS.
The initiative is being implemented by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications and the ICT Division. On July 17, a notification will be sent to all mobile users via SMS, reading: “At 9:00 PM tomorrow, there will be a symbolic one-minute internet blackout. Stay tuned to your phones as we return online.”
Preceding the blackout, a drone show will be held on July 14 at the Raju Memorial Sculpture of Dhaka University. The show will recreate the moment on July 18, 2024, when young female students burst into the streets chanting “Rajakar,” energizing the national protest with renewed vigor. The sky will come alive with a dramatic portrayal of how Bangladesh arrived at the turning point of July.
On July 15, an LED wall will be set up at the Vice Chancellor's premises of Dhaka University. It will present eyewitness accounts and visuals of brutal attacks carried out by Chhatra League on protestors during that period.
On August 5, a concluding drone show will be staged once again in front of the National Parliament as part of the “36 Days of July” observance.
These events are outlined in the official July Reawakening calendar, which was launched via QR code on July 1. The schedule was also published through a late-night post on the official Facebook page of the Chief Adviser (Chief Adviser, GOB) on July 2, confirming the symbolic blackout for July 18.
