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Relief Programme: Advance Planning & Effective Programmes (Internet Edition)
(During the first flood of July-August, 2007)
The cultivation field is a farmer’s profound inspirational ground, where, when he stands, can hold himself with courage and enthusiasm. But, after the flood has doomed all the crops, the marginal farmers have nothing left but desolation. They started the cultivation of the current season with the reserve that they had at their homes, which all eventually submerged in the flood water. After the flood water has moved away, the first and foremost demand of a farmer is seed. On the other hand, at the market, the seed price is severely high. The remaining hopes are: Rehabilitation Programmes, taken by the Government; Loan Facilities, provided by the banks; Multi-assistance Programmes from several organization and institutions. Reality is, this is just not enough, considering the devastated farmers or concerning their overall loss. Nevertheless, this petty support seems immense for the distraught farmers.
Since during the heavy flood till now, alongside other organizations and institutions, Amar Channel-i Dorshok Forum (My Channel-i Viewers Forum) is always there at the side of the flood-affected with relief aid. Beyond this, after the flood water has moved away, Amar Channel-i Dorshok Forum has defined the core demand of the farmers from the flood-affected areas and have stood firm beside them.
This innovative journey had started from the distribution of local variety of Amon seedlings among the farmers of Sirajgonj. Later, on the 27th August 2007 morning, at Chorgolra circle in Manikgonj district, 150 farmers were distributed Amon seedlings. Those who had received the seedlings, most of them were marginal and flood-affected farmers who had lost their crops. The farmers felt enormously assisted, having these plant-worthy seedlings to be planted on 15% cultivable field. To distribute the seedlings among the farmers Local Deputy Commissioner, Combined Force Commander, Officials from the Agriculture Extension Department and local reputed people were present. That day, not only the officials were present at the side of the flood-affected farmers, but they went straight away to the fields to plant the seedlings by their own hands. This was a rare example to be seen ever before.
Yes, the most important thing is, this Agriculture Department has taken their own enterprise to produce 14 Lac various vegetable seeds, has planted more than this. All the other Agriculture Departments from the flood-affected districts have taken similar enterprises. This is really a praiseworthy endeavour. Again, apart from these Agriculture Departments, other organizations have also come forth for the welfare of the flood-affected farmers. A great example of this is, inside the office area of Rural Electricity Association, on a high land, which is eventually children’s playground, the preparation process of the seed-beds is going on. We talked with the concerned officials, related with this venture. The images of the flood-affected areas are distinct from each other. Let us take, for example, the case of Chandpur region, which simultaneously survives with the blessing and curse of river. Last 28th August, 2007 we went to the most distressed and impenetrable alluvial land of this district, which is 12 KM even more inside from Haimchor. This is Gazipur. The target was to distribute different vegetable seeds to 150 local marginal farmers from Amar Channel-i Dorshok Forum. We had the company of Deputy Commissioner, Upazila Agriculture Officers, Viewers’ Forum representatives as well as the local reputed.
For the purpose of the distribution of these vegetable seeds to this remote area, one striking truth came out. Apart from the other areas of the country, the image of the agony among the farmers from Gazipur alluvial land area is distinct. They receive Dadon (Kind of a local loan with high interest) at high interest to produce Soybean, Onion, Garlic and other spice-crops, but they are never benefited from this trade. To count the interest rate of Dadon, many had to sacrifice even their cattle, which were being used for cultivation. The farmers, here, want to cultivate profitably. Here, everybody has, more or less, lands of their own. But, due to many impediments, these marginal farmers are profoundly far behind. They can’t afford seeds due to lack of financial stability. Although, this place has remarkable future for vegetable cultivation, but it’s not been started yet. For the very first time, after they had received 7 different kinds of vegetable seeds, they discovered cultivation diversity.
After the flood, relief programme is not the end of the story; the basic thing is to facilitate the reaching of the exact agriculture ingredients, regarding the type and demand of the agricultural area. We are hopeful that these river-eroded people, flood-affected marginal populace, will move onward towards the socio-economic development with the help of this cultivation diversity. We have repetitively mentioned that natural disaster like flood has become so obvious for our country. And, thinking acutely, regarding the root-level farmers, and regarding pre and post-flood agriculture preparation, there should remain advance planning and effective programmes. We should focus properly onto that ground or else, things will go beyond our reach all in a sudden.
Shykh Seraj
Puffed-rice Production, Adulterating Puffed-rice, and Public (Internet Edition)
Awareness and Current Issue. (September, 2007)
One of the food items during the Holy Ramadan is puffed-rice (Muri). There was a time when nobody used to put forth any doubt or criticism, regarding the purity, impurity or adulteration of this food-product, directly produced from rice. Within two years or so, puffed-rice came into people’s disbelief. The question, regarding puffed-rice’s purity came up. No sooner puffed-rice was commercially expanded as a food product, a group of greedy profiteers and fraudulent tradesmen were in competition to manufacture puffed-rice even whiter and lighter, considering their trivial commercial benefit. The massive dissimilarity of the market price of puffed-rice raised an even higher doubt among the people. The price rose to 80 Tk. from 30 Tk. per Kg. To eliminate doubt and generate awareness among people, Channel-i covered special report on “How to Identify Adulterated and Non-adulterated Puffed-rice?” on its mainstream news. Later, Hridoye Mati O Manush covered even more extensively on this issue. Moreover, during the whole month of Ramadan just after the Iftar, particular filler was aired regarding this issue.
It’s been found that considering puffed-rice’s examination and inspection, there is no promptness in BSTI. They don’t even have any sound management and structure.
From a statistics, it’s identified that per year demand of puffed-rice is approximately 2 lac tons. Monthly, 15, 000 tonnes is needed. During only in the month of Ramadan, it creeps up to 25,000 tons. Although puffed-rice is not the inevitable food-item, however more or less, everyone takes puffed-rice, regarding the Bangladeshi culture and people’s consuming habit. During Ramadan, puffed-rice becomes the focal food-item of the Iftar. With the gradual increase of the population, the commercial significance of puffed-rice started to rise. Once upon a time, the fried-rice in the hands of the rural Bengali women was the only source of puffed-rice. But, puffed-rice has reached the ground of industry and trade, overthrowing the earlier scenario. Solely, puffed-rice industries have formed now. Many people are engaged with it now. Due to the addition of reputed industrialists’ investment, this industry has emerged to a well-established form. Distinct industries on producing the ‘pre-puffed-rice’ have also been formed. At some Dhankholas of the northern districts of Bangladesh, only the pre-puffed-rice is produced. To produce pre-puffed-rice from paddy, modern technologies have arrived ousting the traditional method of the rural women of our country. Furthermore, puffed-rice production techniques have arrived, concerning high amount of production in short-time consumption. Within this, the threat of impurity has also arrived. It’s still in the dark that by whose conspiracy the impurity had entered in the puffed-rice for the first time. God knows, who was first concerned in mixing the water of urea and hydrous in the puffed-rice to make it whiter, more puffed up rather making it more palatable and delicious! ... Any producer from the rural locality? ... Or, someone who is related with puffed-rice industry? No matter by whomever it took the evil shape, the problem is severe at the moment. And, in this month of Ramadan, naturally the focal point of doubt is impure food product. Nobody wants to take unhealthful foodstuff during Iftar. Not a soul can ever imagine, taking anything which is harmful chemical, after keeping the stomach empty for the whole day long. After one year, the thing that was observed, coming to the puffed-rice industry at Savar is slight awareness has developed among the manufacturers of the factory. Outspokenly they declared, they don’t mix urea or hydrous in the puffed-rice.
Renowned puffed-rice producer Fouzia Food Industry’s Proprietor Khairul Alam is informing that for the period of one year everyone has become aware, however, half of the market’s puffed-rice is full of harmful chemical product.
At the Maona Chourasta area in Gazipur, there is couple of puffed-rice production factories. Here, at a large scale, maunds of puffed-rice are being produced. Each day customers are coming to procure puffed-rice. Abul Kalam, the Proprietor of this factory, thinks that the colour of the puffed-rice should affirm whether it’s devoid of chemical influence or not. His statement is logical; nevertheless, some words remain on that note. Alike these industries, those who do the job of frying the puffed-rice at the village by their own hands after fetching it from the pre-puffed-rice production factories of the northern part, to them the logic as regards the colour doesn’t stand at all. Rather, they uphold an additional logic.
Let’s penetrate then onto Hatiabor village of the Porabari vicinity of Gazipur. Once, this village had become very much famous for puffed-rice production. Most of the lands of this village are government-owned. After the 1988 devastating flood, the river-eroded populace of the Rangpur region took resort here. Excluding 5% of the local community, the entire migrant residents had chosen the job of frying the puffed-rice for their subsistence. For about two decades, they are engaged with this profession. After the puffed-rice is produced, weighed and sacked up from the residence, it’s being sent to the wholesale market. Furthermore, following the same rule of weighing, quite a few producers do hawking around the village. Abdur Rashid is one among them.
People concerned with the process of frying the puffed-rice are commenting, only salt-water is being mixed with the puffed-rice here. But, at the same time, they also think that there is something mixed up with the pre-puffed-rice for which the puffed-rice is lighter and it appears unnaturally whiter. And, as the rice reaches them via the wholesalers of Gazipur from Dinajpur and Naogaon, they don’t have any responsibility.
Following this linkage, I went to the puffed-rice production factories of Dinajpur district. In this district, there are 15 auto-mills of pre-puffed-rice and with these 5-6 thousand labours are involved. Each day, 25-30 trucks of pre-puffed-rice are delivered to the various parts of the country from these mills. There is no evident information to the rice producers or the mill proprietors, regarding the harmful mixing in the pre-puffed-rice, rather they informed about the accounts and records of the production.
The people, related with the traditional production of puffed-rice, are saying they are in real bad shape. They can’t stay in the competition whilst the factories have started puffed-rice production. Starting from the midnight even until the whole day with non-stop machine-like rotating hands, the rural women can’t even produce 1/10th of puffed-rice in comparison to the factory production in a single day. Apart from this, the pre-puffed-rice price has increased; multi-intricacies have come up in the puffed-rice marketing. Due to these incidents, many have stepped back from the puffed-rice production meanwhile. Now, only in 7-8 households this profession is still running. Even so, their motivation is decreasing. Perhaps in the near future, the tradition of hand-fried puffed-rice may totally disappear. Most of the market is grasped by the factory-produced puffed-rice. Hand-fried puffed-rice is also there but the market price is sky high.
The puffed-rice industry is getting expanded in such approach. While there remains the necessity of examining and inspecting in various phases of this food-item’s, which is directly produced from rice, production till the marketing, still this trend hasn’t started yet. Although public-awareness is growing but due to the excessive commercial promptness of the tradesmen, manufacturers and pre-puffed-rice manufacturers, it’s almost way beyond reach for the general people to find out the chemical ingredients in the puffed-rice. We believe examination and inspection in the different phases is essential from the pre-puffed-rice production till the puffed-rice manufacturing. Governmental mission regarding the manufacturing of healthy puffed-rice is most indispensable while visiting each puffed-rice factories. We don’t want that a traditional and delicious food-item exists as a fear among the people; we don’t want either that during Ramadan this delicious and exceedingly used food-item creates any doubt whatsoever among the people. For activities against the public-health considering petty profit, strict legal penalties should have to be regulated. Dear Viewers, during Ramadan don’t get attracted, seeing whiter and perforated puffed-rice, rather consume comparatively weighty and reddened puffed-rice. Kindly remember, as there are multi-usefulness of healthy puffed-rice, there are at the same time multi-harmful sides of chemically influenced puffed-rice, which may cause so many severe diseases.
Shykh Seraj
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