Here are some links of news about the desaster:

http://thedailystar.net/2007/06/12/d7061201011.htm
http://thedailystar.net/2007/06/13/d7061301011.htm
http://thedailystar.net/latest/updates.php?pid=6

http://www.newagebd.com/2007/jun/12/front.html#1

http://www.e-mela.com/page.php?id=120
http://www.e-mela.com/page.php?id=121
http://www.e-mela.com/page.php?id=133

A post in a community blog at Bangladesh about helping the victims:

http://www.somewhereinblog.net/blog/arildblog/28715679

Please donate here:

http://mysticsaint.blogspot.com/2002/06/donation-for-chittagong-mudslide.html 

On a Friday evening they were waiting for the 11 Sindhu’s Morning at Dhaka Railway Station. They were leaving for their home. Most of them were old ladies. Only one male in the group – Moslem, who is of about 84. Another exception was a young lady named Shampa.

They are from a village named Radharchar which is at the Karimganj thana of Kishorgonj district. All of them are distant relatives. At Tuesday they arrive at Dhaka railway station which is a 50 tk third class journey. They live at the station at night, and go on begging all over the city at daylight. Usually they stay 7-10 days there, and return. In this period they can save 400-500 tk each after the expense to purchase food. To save money they eat as less as possible. The day they were waiting at the station in the evening, they only had their breakfast in the morning, and will have their next meal at the next day morning after arriving at their own home.

Moslem is the oldest among the group. His wife just expired two months ago. He has two son and a daughter at home. The group taking him home because he can be in problems alone in the station. He won’t allow to take his photograph for the religious reason.

70 Years old Chan Banu has five son at home. All of them work as daily labour at their village. They have 4-5 children each. So Chan Banu came to the city in search of some additional income. Her husband died in the liberation war at 1971. She got married at the year of the great riot among the Hindus and Muslims in the British period, when the whole sub continent was one country. She was only 9 years old, while her husband was 35. They were established farmers having a good quantity of land of their own to cultivate, and lots of cattle. She went to primary school and used to write at the leaf of banana tree.

55 Years old Sufia Khatun has only 2 daughters who got married. Because of not having any son, she keeps one of her daughters with her family at her own home. She brings her invalid grandchild with him while begging, which is supposed to get more public sympathy and more earning.

The youngest member of the group is a lady named Shampa of about 35. She got married 10 years ago and has 2 daughters of 5 and 2 years. Her husband left her 3 years ago and got married again. He was a mechanic and had a shop at the village bazaar. He was continuously demanding 20,000 tk from her parents to purchase goods for his shop, and not having the money finally left her and married again. At the question of why she doesn’t work at any garments industry she told about not having anyone to take care her children while she can go to work.

None of these old ladies have their husband alive, and their children are very poor to feed their own family. So they came in this profession. While living at the platform, guards of the station regularly keep them away. They then stay at the footpath of the street or any nearby land under the open air. Most problems arrive in the rainy seasons under the open air when they have to suffer in rain and storm. No one of them is willing to carry this profession, but they have no other way to survive.

On a Friday afternoon he was walking at the main street of the New Market area of the capital city rising on two very tall bamboo sticks. The sticks were colored in red. Extra bamboos were added in the lower parts of the sticks to make it a bit thicker, covered in red cloths, which help him to keep balance.

He was wearing complete black dress – pajamas, panjabis, shoes, and glasses. There was a bag too in his back which he uses to keep his things. His whole appearance was so funny that people was looking at him in amazement, and seeing the board giving money. He was an old man of more than seventy.

A group of street children was always around him who who were teasing him. He was sometime suddenly walking wildly and making fake threats to these children to keep them away from them, for they can get hurt in his sticks. Sometime he was taking rest holding a pillar on the street. Sometime he was suddenly getting down from his sticks and keeping the sticks aside and begging on foot.

“27 Years I am walking on these sticks in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. All those years, I couldn’t find any gentleman who will say, I have enough wealth, you don’t need to walk on those sticks just to feed your family. Come and live with me. I will look after your family!”

“Today I got only two gentleman in the New Market area who gave me 10 tk each. There was nothing in this area when I first came here. I used to sleep here under the trees. Now there is lots of rich people. But why have I fought in the liberation war? To see so many people do corruption? I do not even get any money from the governments welfare program for the old people. They want brive from me. why?”

“Please help me to feed my family….”

75 Years old Noor Mohamad was telling about his profession. He lives with his family in a very small house of about 9 feet by 6 feet made of bamboo and plastic. It is beside the highway in the government place. There was hundreds of such house in this place before the caretaker government threw them away several months ago under a special action. A businessman erected these house illegally in the government place and rented them to the poor people for 400 tk per month. After the destruction of these houses, only Noor Mohammad himself erected his own house again in the same place.The other people went away from here. He now do not have to pay anyone to live here.

Noor Mohammad came to the city 12 years ago. He did not have any land to cultivate. All his life he worked at other people’s land as a daily labour. One day he sold even his home at the village and decided to come to the city with his family in search of a better living. The name of his village is Kaunia. It’s on the Amtoli thana at Borguna district.

He married at the age of 25. His wife died after 7/8 years of their marriage leaving 2 daughter. After one year of her death, he married again to raise his children. “When I went to work, there was no one around to look after my children. So I decided to marry again.”

About 14/15 years ago he married again. His second wife died too in sickness leaving 3 daughters of her own. His father-in-law decided to marry his younger daughter to him, thinking about raising the children of his late elder daughter. Her name is Shefali. When I asked her why she agreed to marry an old man who married to times before, she told – “It was my fate to marry him. So did I.” She now have three son and two daughters of his own. The age of her younger daughter is about 18 months.

Noor gave marriage of her first two daughters at his own village. One of heir husband works as labour at field, and another one drives rickshaw-van. The three daughter of his second wife got married too. The husband of the elder one lives with his family near him in a same type of house like him. He usually set up deep tube-oil in contact basic, where he gets 500-1,000 tk everyday. If he work with other in the same job, he get 200 tk daily as waiges. When there is no job of this kind available, he and hif wife works in the brick fields where they have to break bricks and stones. “For breaking 100 bricks they pay us 45-50 tk. Usually one can break 150-200 bricks everyday. And when we work of carrying stone, we have to work from 5 am – 8 pm and get 100 tk in daily basis. This is a very hard job. We have to carry heavy stones to the machines to break.”

The husband of the second daughter drives motorcycle and transport people. They live at their own district. The cute little younger daughter of about 17 got married three years ago. After the birth of her son one year letter, her husband left her and ran away. She now works at the brick field and lives with her fathers family. All the children of his last wife are still kid.

Noor Mohammad himself does not do any heavy work. For last several years he is working as a Kobiraj. He learned to make some medicine with trees and plants which he gives to his patients for several diseases. He claims about curing his patients with his home made medicines. Among them the most popular medicine he gives to the sexually inactive men. He also claims to treet about some supernatural things. His customers are generally elleterate poor people, who lives like him beside the street. For the reason of having so many children he states, “I took children one after another in the hope of a son. All of my first children was daughters. And I did not want to kill anyone yet-to-come-in-the-world in the fear of God.” In another question I asked about his not taking care of the children properly, he said, “God created them, and he will take care of feeding them.”

Before leaving this family I wanted to know about his village. He said, “I still miss my village. I go to my village once in  4/5 years. I stay at the home of any relative for some days and return. After my death, my wish is to have my doom at my loving village.”

These are used mainly in building constructions. Businessmen purchases bricks and stones, and breaks in pieces with the help of these labours.

In breaking bricks, they get paid in the production basis. For breaking 100 bricks, they get 45-50 tk. Usually they can break 100-200 bricks everyday.

In case of stone, they get paid in daily basis. They have to carry heavy stones to the machines where these breaks in pieces.

For working 5 am to 8 pm they get 100 tk. If anyone gets tired in carrying heavy stones and attempt to take rest for a while, they get kicked in the back. 

Men and women of every age work here. The majority of them are women. Among they labour, they have a leader who represents the workers of that spot.

If you stand beside a spot for a while, you will really think the whole world is breaking in pieces.

-Where are you from?
-Mizala village of Potuakhali district. 

-How long are you selling cakes?
-10 Years.

-What your husband does?
-We run this shop together. He sells here in the morning, and me after evening.

-What was his previous profession?
-He worked as a daily labour at Panchaboti.

-How much are you earning?
-Not so good. Costs of everything have risen. We earn 150-200 tk daily, which is equal to the payment of a daily labour.

-How much time you sell here?
-From 07.30 am – 10.00 pm daily.

-Why have you come to the city?
-We do not have any land to cultivate at the village except our home. So we came to the city 13 years ago in the hope of a better life.

-What about your children?
-We have two daughters and two son. The daughter is elder. We gave her marriage with a man from our neighbour village 3 years ago. He works as a rickshaw-van driver here at 4,500 tk salary per month. My two son works as sewing machine operator at a garments. And the younger daughter is still going to primary school.

-Did you give anything to the bride?
-They demanded 20,000 tk cash in the marriage. So we had to take loan from the co-operative banks and give the bride.

-How much you took as loan?
-70,000 tk.

-What have you done with rest of the money?
-The rest we expensed for the marriage festival.

-How much you pay every week for the loan?
-2,100 tk per week in two banks. We also keep 100 tk every week in our fixed deposit there.

-When will you give marriage to your elder son?
-After recovering the loan.

-Will you take money in the marriage of your sons?
-No. Not at all. I do not like this system.

-Why?
-Because you can never prosper and get peace in other peoples money. I do not know what is in mind of my sons about this matter, but I am completely against taking money in the son’s marriage. And other thing is, I do not know how many years will I live to see their marriage.

-Then why have you gave money to the bride in your daughter’s marriage?
-Simply because he wont marry her without the money.

-How was things in your time?
-The situation was completely different. There was not any hard system of giving money to the bride at the marriage. My family simply gave some things of use in our daily life as a gift. There was no bindings.

-Do you sometime go to your village?
-I do not get much time to go there. Because if I go anywhere, we have to keep our shop closed. But my husband does. He goes there at least twice a year. Right now he is at the village. He went there last week and yet to return.

-Do you wish to ever settle back to your village?
-Yes…from the deep in my heart. If we could be freed from our loans, and make a source of income, we would surely returned to our village. We are thinking about our return after the marriage of our sons.

-Where is your resident here?
-We have taken a room near here. Its a tin shaded house. We give 1,100 tk per month as rent. After the marriage of my elder son, we will take a larger quarter.

-Do you have any problem here in keeping the shop?
-Yes. We sell to some people due in monthly basis. They pay us together after they get payment in every month. Among these people, some do not pay us full. May be they pay us in 2/3 months properly, and after that when they owe 100/200 tk to us, they just do not come any more. And there is no way to get the money back.

-You have anything to tell to our readers?
-If government or other agency give us some money to purchase some cows and lands, we would settle to our dear little village, and die in peace.

-Why do u want to return? Don’t you like to keep your shop here?
-No. Not at all.

-Why?
-Every day I have to talk to hundreds of men. It’s a shame for a muslim female…!

-How much money you had?
-280 tk. 200 was my investment, and 80 tk profit. Everyday I purchase food for my family with the profit, and keep my investment. What will I do now? How will I buy food for my family? My whole body is aching…

-What’s your name?
-Moinul.

-Where are you from?
-Gaibandha.

-Which village?
-Durgapur. It’s on Polashbari thana.

-Where do you live?
-The other side of the river – Bandar.

-How is the house?
-It’s made of tin.

-How much is the rent?
-400 tk per month.

-Who do you have at home?
-My mother and 2 sisters.

-What does your father do?
-He has expired.

-When?
-2 Years ago.

-How did he die?
-Died in cold. He was a fisherman. He used to catch fish in the river and sell in the market. He got asthma for continuously wetting in the water and died 2 years ago.

-What about your mother?
-She works at other peoples home.

-And your sisters?
-They are of 8 and 6 years of old. I am the elder.

-When have you arrived at Narayanganj?
-1 month ago.

-How did you come here?
-My mother brought me here.

-I don’t understand..!
-Some people from my village live here. After the death of my father, they told my mother to come here for work. She then came to work here. Last month she bought me here.

-What was your profession there?
-I was a rickshaw haler. But the income was not sufficient there. So I came here and selling fried peanut. My mother gave me 200 tk to start the business.

-How was your income here?
-Usually 50 to 150 tk.

-How was the incident happened today?
-I was selling along the way beside the rail line. There was dark there for the load shading. Suddenly these 2 people came and attacked me. They were telling – “we need money to purchase drugs”. They took everything from me. You should not go there in dark…but I didn’t care…

-Will you  recognise them if see them again?
-Yes, I will. They are of 20/22 years of age. Not very heavy built. Ooh..what Will happen to me now? How will I purchase food for tonight?…They even taken the investment from me…

(Moinul was crying at a market with a basket in head, which is usually used to sell fried peanut. People were asking him questions and giving some money. Being curious, the writer called him aside and took the interview. He is about 16/17 years of age. For not having flash in the camera, it was not possible to take a more clear photograph of him.)

Some of them were playing cricket. Others were watching sitting on some pipe, which was brought to set up the water supply system. Some aged people was watching the playing too, sitting on a bench of bamboo beside the land.

One girl of about 10 was riding on the tree near the field. Two other kid was trying to ride the tree in vain. After taking her picture, she requested to take another picture with her brother, who was playing on the street beside the field. But because of the rush of other children, it was not possible to take their picture alone.

These pictures were taken from the ground. They were very much exited to see taking there photograph, and gave every kinds of poses.

When I finally turned back, all of them was saying me bye bye. I earned their friendship only just with a very cheap camera.

-Mohakhali? It not the way to go to Mohakhali…You have to go by bus!
-I’ll go there along the way with the rail line on foot.

-But it’s a long way!
-What else to do!

-Where have you come from?
-Saidabad.

-Where is your home?
-Chhilagai.

-Where is that?
-On Fulpur thana in Mymensing.

-When have you arrived at Dhaka?
-5 days ago.

-Why have you come?
-In search of work.

-Got any?
-Yes. I worked three days at Abdullahpur.

-What kind of work?
-Worked on a field as a daily labour.

-Then what happened?
-There had no work for next several days. So I was going home.

-But how have you come here? It’s not on the way of your home?
-I took a bus for Mohakhali, but they drop me at Saydabad. Since then I was lost.

-Then?
-I took another bus and came here.

-Why?
-I thought I can go to Mohakhali along the way of the rail line from here.

-Who do you have at home?
-I have two son.

-What they do?
-They are half mad. They work on other peoples land if any work available.

-Have they got married?
-Yes. They have children too.

-Do you have your own land?
-Not any, except my home to live.

-What about your wife? Is she live?
-Yes.

(This interview was taken outside the Dhaka Railway Station. He was walking to the rail road like a mad man in the mid afternoon with a bag of cloth in his back. The writer gave him some money and took him to the bus station, and helped to get up a bus of Mohakhali and told the driver to lift him to the right station. May be he will be able to get in a bus to Mymensing from there. I believe he have to request a driver to take him free.)

-What happened?
-I’ve got fever, and pain in stomach. 

-What is your name?
-Rahaman.

-Where are you from?
-Khulna.

-Which area of Khulna?
-North Bazaar.

-Why have you come to Dhaka?
-In search of work.

-Have you got any?
-(…Smile) Not yet (…no sign of having any interest to get one…)

-What have you had then?
-I am starving for 2 days (…doesn’t seem like having any complain for this…)

-Where have you got that cigarette?
-(…Smile again…) Asked from people (…tries to hide it…in shame…)

-When have you arrived?
-5/6 days ago

-What is your age?
-30 Years

-What??
-30 Years (…smile…he only have five teeth left…not less then 50 any way…)

-Who do you have at home?
-My parents

-What do the do?
-They work

-What kind of work?
-Work at other peoples land

-You haven’t got married?
-Not yet

-How many children you have?
-Not any

-Have your daughter got married?
-Don’t have any

-Your grandchildren?
-I do not have

-Really you haven’t got married?
-No

-Will you get married now? Should we seek a bridegroom for you?
-No

-Why?
-I myself can’t arrange food…what will I feed her?

-Where will you go now?
-That’s what I am thinking about (…smile again…doesn’t seem any sign of tension…)

( This interview was taken at the Kamalapur Railway Station, Dhaka. He was siting beside the ticket counter, but was not begging. At night when the writer was coming back on the same way, he was seen to take preparation to sleep before a marker near the railway station.)

For several years, garments industries has become the main stream of revenue in Bangladesh. More then 70% of the total revenue of this country comes from this sector. Government has given the most priority to this sector to make it stronger. For this reason they have build several industrial areas for only garments and related industries, where this industries can find more facilities to continue their work smoothly. One of these areas is the BSCIC Industrial Area at Narayanganj.

At BSCIC there now exists 250+ garments and related industries, and new ones are developing continuously. More then 150,000 people come to work at this area daily. And these are the two of the five main ways to enter this area. Everyday thousands of workers cross these bridges on their way to work in the risks of their lives. Accidents happen in regular basis.

Among other ways, one is to come by boat. There is a lack of black colored poisonous water in between the Dhaka-Narayanganj highway and the area where two engine boats transport people across the lack. This is a short-cut way to the main road. So this way is used heavily. It is a very common scene to fall people in the poisonous water of the lack while trying to aboard the boats hurriedly.

And in the very main road to enter BSCIC, there is a big storage of garbage. If you come first time on this road on foot and do not vomit for the bad smell, you are likely to consult your E.N.T specialist for your nostril!

The labour cost is very low at Bangladesh. So more and more buyers are coming with their orders here everyday. You will really wonder, how could this be possible for people working on an environment like this to produce the best quality garments in the world!

He was born at a remote village named Narayankhola in Mymensing district. He has less then 1 decimal land beside his home. So all his life he had to work as a labour in other peoples land to earn a living. He has two sisters, and one daughter. Now in his old age of about 80, he finds himself completely alone. His wife expired 6 years ago. His daughter lives with her family at Narayanganj. And does not have any more ability to work!

His son-in-law works as a daily labour at Narayanganj. He told him to come and live with his family. So 4 years ago he came to live with his daughters family. But they are poor too. So they told him to beg at street, because anything else is not possible for him to do. Since then he is begging at the same place.

Every day he earns 25 – 50 tk. (less then $1 at the highest) at the morning, all of which he gives to his daughter. He can remember lots of things about his past, but completely forgot his own name! Now the only expectation of him is to peacefully pass away from this measurable life.

In this old age, he needs rest, and food, and a small operation in his eyes which will give him back the power to see again this beautiful earth.