S.A Shofiee, Sylhet :
The indefinite blockade programme, which has already hit hard the country’s economy in the last three weeks, is causing the worst pinch to the poor segment of the society as the livelihood of the poor has plunged into inexpressible miseries due to the latest spate of political unrest.
Day labourers, construction workers, small traders, hawkers, cobblers and van drivers in Sylhet became the worst victims of the non-stop blockade and frequent hartal. Transport workers are also among the sufferers as the transportation network remains almost paralysed, leaving the workers in further hardship.
While visiting the truck depots in Subhanighat and Shibgonj in the Sylhet city, it was seen that the day labourers and transport workers are passing idle time for lack of work. It was learnt that the van drivers who are dependent on the arrival of vegetable- laden trucks at Subhanighat had no earnings in the last three weeks.
‘The ongoing blockade programme has put us in a miserable situation as we have hardly any income to earn bread and butter for our families,’ said, president of Sylhet Truck Covered Van Drivers Union.
He said the hartal has affected the transport workers badly as most of them are employed on daily basis.
Md Alamin, a farmer of Golapgonj, has sent 500 cauliflowers to Subhanighat Bazaar, the largest wholesale market in the Sylhet on Monday.
It was seen that only one third of the cauliflowers has been sold till Monday afternoon and the truck is scheduled to start for Sylhet on Monday evening. The ongoing hartal has emerged as a course for the day labourers who live from day to day.
Abbas Miah, a van driver in Bagbari told this correspondent that he used to earn around Tk 300 to 400 taka per prior to the blockade.
The indefinite blockade programme, which has already hit hard the country’s economy in the last three weeks, is causing the worst pinch to the poor segment of the society as the livelihood of the poor has plunged into inexpressible miseries due to the latest spate of political unrest.
Day labourers, construction workers, small traders, hawkers, cobblers and van drivers in Sylhet became the worst victims of the non-stop blockade and frequent hartal. Transport workers are also among the sufferers as the transportation network remains almost paralysed, leaving the workers in further hardship.
While visiting the truck depots in Subhanighat and Shibgonj in the Sylhet city, it was seen that the day labourers and transport workers are passing idle time for lack of work. It was learnt that the van drivers who are dependent on the arrival of vegetable- laden trucks at Subhanighat had no earnings in the last three weeks.
‘The ongoing blockade programme has put us in a miserable situation as we have hardly any income to earn bread and butter for our families,’ said, president of Sylhet Truck Covered Van Drivers Union.
He said the hartal has affected the transport workers badly as most of them are employed on daily basis.
Md Alamin, a farmer of Golapgonj, has sent 500 cauliflowers to Subhanighat Bazaar, the largest wholesale market in the Sylhet on Monday.
It was seen that only one third of the cauliflowers has been sold till Monday afternoon and the truck is scheduled to start for Sylhet on Monday evening. The ongoing hartal has emerged as a course for the day labourers who live from day to day.
Abbas Miah, a van driver in Bagbari told this correspondent that he used to earn around Tk 300 to 400 taka per prior to the blockade.
