As nationwide humanitarian assistance distribution by the government and other voluntary organizations are going on in full-swing, needy people staged a demonstration on Tuesday in Dinajpur town to press home their demand for relief in this perilous time triggered by coronavirus epidemic.
The demonstrators assembled in front of Chandganj Degree College and created blockade on the roads as they lacked jobs to live on and remained hungry for want of food.
Hunger and malnutrition gripped a large number of people while many fell sick due to rising tension created due to their inability to pay house rent, electricity, gas and water bills and also installments of loans.
According to sources, the situation is similar in 13 upazilas of Dinajpur district. Most of the working-class people including laborers, hotel workers, motor workers, construction workers, hawkers, newspaper hawkers, rickshaw and van drivers did not get government aid. Questions are now being raised about the unavailability of aids.
A helpless family member, who did not want to disclose his name, alleged that those who distributed relief in his area provided some relief goods to their party men, besides resorting to irregularities.
Meanwhile, there were also allegations against Dinajpur Deputy Commissioner's Office. Many people who applied for aid in online did not get them. According to sources, the online service was shut down after 4,000 people applied for aid online to the deputy commissioner. A number of helpless families have expressed their frustration over not getting aid through online.
In front of Mahutpara Tut Bagan, van driver Halim, Mojibar of Baludanga and Hamid of Daftaripara told this correspondent, “Sir, we don’t know much and have applied to DC office from other people’s mobiles and some people have submitted their national identity cards directly with mobile numbers but still have not received any aid so far.”
Bulbuli Pakhi a widow laborer of Mistripara, Pulhat, Dinajpur. She has a family of three daughters. She also received no relief assistance after applying online. Asthma patient Pakhi. She does not know what she will do and where she will go for her treatment.
Meanwhile, during lockdown, the number of theft cases in Dinajpur, has also increased. Major theft incidents have taken place at the classic computer showroom at Modernmore and in a plastic factory in Lalbagh area. Till now, the stolen goods were still not recovered by Kotwali police.
Fazlur Rahman is one of the middle-class people from Paharpur. He went to the Deputy Commissioner's office on Tuesday to submit his national identity card in the hope of getting relief, but the DC's official did not accept his identity card and said there was no aid.
There were no trace of Dinajpur Deputy Commissioner Md Mahmudul Alam. He was not found in his office when our correspondent tried to communicate with him. There are no public representatives in the field. Two private organisations provide relief to helpless people, but there were complaints that local public representatives were nowhere to be found.
One laborer said that during the election, everyone went from house to house to ask for votes. But now we are unable to get out of our houses for almost 1 month due to the coronavirus in the country. We are spending our days without eating properly but the local representatives are not here to help us.
There is no good news for the middle-class people as well. A middle-class man cried as he said that no one came with any help for them. One man said, “By leaving shame aside I went to get aid but we were insulted as people took pictures of us. He became very emotional and said, are we not humans! We are currently helpless, but not beggars.
With lockdown, we have no choice but to go for government aid. The middle-class list includes journalists, advocates, small businessmen, teachers, students, rural doctors, retired private workers, and many others.
The people of Dinajpur, who are suffering from hunger, have directly sought the intervention of Hon'ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. So that, Bangladesh army can quickly reach out in Dinajpur and take necessary measures including aid, emergency medicine and cash.
