When winter comes in Chuadanga, the women of every village in the upazila spend their busy time making pumpkin pills to add flavor to the food. Therefore, for a few days, the winter has been lingering in every village of Jibannagar. Winter is the perfect time to make pumpkin pills. During winter, the work engagement of village women increases. Even then, there are many small daily tasks. Meanwhile, women make pumpkin pills in the morning before all work. Pumpkin pill curry is a delicious food. It adds a new dimension to the taste of the curry.
It has been seen on the ground that hundreds of women of the upazila are involved in making pumpkin pills. With the arrival of winter, they are busy making pumpkin pills. Pumpkin pills are made more or less during the rest of the months except the rainy season. From the fall season, the 5 months of making pumpkin pills exist. Winter is busy season for pumpkin pie making. During this time, more or less pumpkin pills are made in every house in the village.
Some people meet the needs of the family and sell the rest in the market. Pumpkin pills are in high demand during winter, and rural women also make pumpkin pills for extra income. The main ingredients for making pumpkin pills are dal and rice pumpkin.
Maskalai is being sold at Tk 100 to Tk 120 per kg and rice pumpkin at Tk 15 to Tk 20 per kg. Depending on the size, the gourd can be bought between 50 and 70 Tk. Mixing 5 kg of rice pumpkin with 2 kg of pulses makes pumpkin pill well. First, the pulses is dried in the sun and then broken and cleaned or unbroken and soaked in water. The mask should be soaked in water for about 5 to 6 hours. Then a mixture of pumpkin pills is made by grinding it in a sieve or mill.
However, now since the installation of pumpkin pill making machines in different areas of the upazila, everyone is crushing and grinding pumpkins. Then a mixture of the two is used to make pumpkin pill ingredients. Pill making starts at dawn in a sunny open space, courtyard, roof or open space. Pills are placed in rows on a thin cloth. After planting the pumpkin seeds are dried in continuous sun for two to three days. If the sunlight is less, it takes up to 3-4 days to dry. After drying, the pill is removed from the cloth and stored in a container. Many backward girls of the village have been engaged in making these pumpkin pills for many years by working hard to improve their fortunes. About 30-40 families of Kantapol village of the upazila are making pumpkin pills on commercial basis.
Anita Rani, a woman craftsman of that village, said that earlier the pumpkin pill trading families were not so wealthy in the first place. Now many people have become self-reliant by selling pumpkin pills.
He also said that 5 kg of pumpkin and two kg of pulses pumpkin pills are well made. Earlier cleaning the masks by soaking them in water, and making the pills by beating them in a jar or pata was a lot of work and time consuming. Now peeled pulses are available for purchase in the market.
It is very easy to prepare the mixture for making pills in a short time by soaking the pulses in water and grinding it with the help of machine. This makes it possible to make a large amount of pumpkin pills in a short time. It costs around 120 taka to make one kg of pumpkin pills. And it is being sold in the market at the rate of 200 to 250 taka per kg. It is possible to meet the needs of the family and earn extra income.
Mazedur Rahman, the upazila's pumpkin pill trader, said that because the pumpkin pills here are very tasty, the pills of this region are sent to different districts of the country to meet the local demand. Especially in Dhaka, its demand is highest.
He also said that it can be made throughout the year. But its value is more in winter. Because, it is very fun to cook and eat during winter. Cooking with koi fish makes the curry fun.
From making their pumpkin pills, all the work is done by house girls or women workers. The wages of women workers to make pumpkin pills are also higher.
In this regard, Jibannagar Upazila Agriculture Officer Sharmin Akhter said that in the winter season, the women of the village are making extra income by making pumpkin pills. If rural women receive proper training and support, they will be able to improve their fortunes and contribute significantly to the rural economy.