DHAKA, Jan 09, 2022 (BSS)- Pinki Das was leading a gypsy life roaming one place to another after her homestead was devoured by mighty river Karnaphuli five years ago.
The erosion of Karnaphuli displaced her family two times. The river gulped up her home located at Rangunia upazila of Chattogram first time in 2008 and then they shifted to another place in her village.
But they became victim of riverbank erosion again in 2017 and they were forced to displace that put their lives in untold misery.
They faced severe problems along with other family members, including old mother-in-law.
They used to stay at the residences of their poor relatives for some days. But the relatives were also unable to afford that for a long. Later, they started living on footpaths under open sky in Chattogram city.
"We lost our home two times within a decade in erosion of river Karnaphuli. Later, we didn't have any home of our own. We led a very miserable life," Pinki Das told BSS while sharing her bitter experience of life.
She said: "Over the last few years, my husband has been working as CNG-run auto-rickshaw driver but his income is not enough for maintaining all expenses, including house rent, of the family."
Now, the government's Ashrayan Project appeared as a boon for Pinki Das as they got a two-room semi- pucca tin-shed house of their own on two decimal lands like thousands of other homeless people. Through this, a dream came true for Das and her family members.
Pinki Das's family used to live on hand to mouth and they could never imagine that they would have their own house with water and electricity facilities.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had undertaken the Ashrayan Project in 1997 and 3,73,562 houses have so far been given to homeless and landless families under the Ashrayan Project run by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
Former Project Director of the Ashrayan-2 project Md Mahbub Hossain said the government prepared a list of 885,622 families in 2020, of which 293,361 families are landless and homeless and 592,261 families have 1-10 decimal land but no housing facility.
Under the Ashrayan-2 Project, a total of 1,18,380 landless and homeless families have been given two-room semi-pucca tin-shed houses on two decimal lands so far, he said.
Deputy Project Director of the Ashrayan-2 Mohammed Jahedur Rahman said the government is working relentlessly to ensure quality homes for the homeless people under the 'Ashrayan Project'.
He said the government is providing all civic facilities, including school, mosque, temple, electricity and drainage system under its different projects.
The government also rehabilitated 600 climate refugees in 20 five-storey buildings at Khurushkul in Cox's Bazar in 2020.
Each family is getting the property worth Taka 2.6 lakh, if the value of two-decimal land is on an average Taka 50,000. The construction cost of every house is nearly Taka 2 lakh, while the cost of utility connections (electricity and gas) is Taka 10,000.
Under the scheme, joint ownership of two-decimal land alongside a modern house is being given to both husband and wife of each family.