RANGPUR, Aug 20, 2018 (BSS) – Many people are preparing to celebrate the Eid-ul-Azha festivity and slaughter sacrificial animals in riverine char areas of greater Rangpur region following improvement in their economic conditions.
Even a decade ago, most of the people living in riverine char areas of Rangpur, Gaibandha, Kurigram, Nilphamari and Lalmonirhat districts in the region had to live in utter miseries due to abject poverty and struggled to earn livelihoods for survival.
Officials and development experts said, a significant change took place in socioeconomic conditions of char people following implementation of the government’s massive social safety-net programmes and developments by other organisations in past ten years.
Chairman of Rangpur-based research organisation ‘Northbengal Institute of Development Studies’ Dr Syed Samsuzzaman said char areas wore a festive look following massive government interventions in improving economic conditions of the char people.
“Many people living in different char areas are preparing to slaughter goats, sheep and cows this time though most of them had to move for collecting meats of sacrificial animals even a decade ago,” he said.
Chairman of Astomirchar union in Chilmari upazila of Kurigram Md Abu Taleb said the char people are leading normal life without experiencing any bite of extreme poverty as they felt so a decade ago and they are dreaming of brighter future for their children.
“Overcoming miseries of vicious cycle of poverty, some of the char people are purchasing sacrificial animals and some others will sacrifice their cattle heads reared at homes to celebrate the Eid-ul-Azha festivity,” he said.
Chairman of Nohali union under Gangachara upazila in Rangpur Abul Kalam Azad said many char people living in different char villages under his union would sacrifice their domestically reared animals and some other would purchase the same this year.
Chilmari upazila chairman Shawkat Ali Sarker, Bir Bikram, said many char people have changed their fortune through various income generation activities getting adequate government assistance under the massive social safety-net programmes.
“Most of the char people are excited to celebrate the upcoming Eid-Ul-Azha festivity now following improvement in their socioeconomic conditions as a result of effective steps taken by the present government during past ten years,” Sarker added.
Char dwellers Abdur Razzaque and Khobiza Begum of village Char Paschim Mohipur under Gangachara upazila in Rangpur said many of the char people were preparing to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha festivity this year.
Mahbub Alam and Kochhim Uddin of same village said many people of different char villages under Gangachara upazila already took perpetrations to sacrifice animals like goats, sheep and cows during the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha festivity.
Similarly, Abdul Aziz of village Char Dakshin Khoribari in Nilphamari, Farman Ali of Char Khuniagachh in Lalmonirhat and Nur Islam of Char Korpura village in Kurigram said many of their fellow char dwellers took preparations to sacrifice animals.
Divisional Commissioner Kazi Hasan Ahmed said the massive social safety-net activities of the government like employment generation programmes, allowances, VGF, VGD, TR and FFW played key role in eradicating abject poverty from Rangpur region.
“As a result of successful implementation of massive social safety- net programmes as well as other development activities with GO-NGO collaborations, the char people have significantly improved life standard to celebrate the Eid-ul-Azha festivity,” Hasan added.