Relocated people facing misery

Over 150 relocated families of Shibchar upazila in Madaripur – who gave up their lands and ancestral property for the Padma bridge project – have been living a miserable life as the rehabilitation facilities remain inadequate for them.

Locals said the authorities concerned had acquired their land promising a good return, but the living and other household facilities offered in the rehabilitation project were insufficient for their large families.

The Bakhorerkandi Rehabilitation Centre, which was prepared to host 611 families, has plots measuring 2.5 decimals, five decimals, and 7.5 decimals.

Currently, 603 plots have been assigned to 1,500-2,000 displaced people through lotteries, said Caretaker Engineer Sarful Islam Sarkar of the Padma bridge project and also the rehabilitation centre.

The centre has a mosque, a healthcare centre, a primary school, a playground, modern drainage systems, pure drinking water facilities, and uninterrupted electricity.

Abdus Sattar Matabbar, a relocated person, now lives with his four sons and their respective families in a three-bedroom tin-shed apartment built on a 2.5-decimal land.

He said, “I have lost 114 decimals of land, comprising a house and cropland. In return, I got a five decimal plot at the rehabilitation centre to make a house that cost me an additional Tk 1,10,000.”

“Now, it is difficult for me to accommodate my large family in this three-bedroom apartment.”

Alamgir Khan, a resident of the Old Embankment area, lost his ancestral house and property to the Padma bridge project. As he died a few years back, four of his children are now living in a congested tin-shed house, said Shahjahan Khan, one of his sons.

During a recent visit, the residents of the rehabilitation centre were seen living in rows of houses made with corrugated iron sheets or concrete with a few colourfully painted gates or mosaic-tiled walls here and there.

However, the comfort of the paved roads and basic amenities do not quite make up for their old living places, the residents said.

Besides, their livelihoods morphed into a more laborious ordeal for those who continue to be farmers or work in agriculture after the relocation because they are not allowed to keep cows or poultry on the premises of the resettlement sites. They have to rent space offsite to continue their farming or agricultural work.

“We are mostly farmers and do not know any other way to earn our livelihoods. As we lost the cropland and this place has no farming arrangements, we do not know what we would do to earn our daily bread,” said resident Shahjahan.

“Besides, the sole healthcare centre under the project is understaffed and equipped to provide only basic healthcare. We need to go to other hospitals in the district, which is very far from here,” he added.

Pratap Chandra Das, deputy medical officer of the healthcare centre, told The Business Post that the hospital is operating with only nine staff members and cannot handle the large number of patients it receives.

“As soon as we get the required equipment and manpower, we will be able to offer proper healthcare to the residents of this centre,” he said.

The caretaker engineer, Sarful, told The Business Post that they had handed over the plots to the respective families and it is now the latter’s duty to carry out maintenance.

“We have provided modern housing facilities for the residents, ensuring their safety and comfort. However, we cannot constantly help them by providing maintenance services. They themselves should take initiatives to solve those problems,” added the official.