A Correspondent :
Speakers at a rally on Tuesday vowed to prevent the conspiracy of closing down the Bidi industry by imposing excessively high duty and also to prevent the blue print of handing over the Bidi market to the hands of cigarette companies.
They alleged that the British American Tobacco Company is siphoning off lakhs of money earning profit through cigarette business in Bangladesh and some people in the NBR misleading Finance Minister with a motivation to handover the Bidi market to the cigarette.
The leaders of Bangladesh Bidi Sramik Federation, Barisal region organised the rally at Barisal Town Hall premises of Sadar Raod in Barisal on Tuesday morning as part of their ongoing road show in different parts of the country. President of Karigar Bidi Sramik Union, Pranab Debnath presided over the rally, held after a human chain while General Secretary of the Federation, M K Bangali attended as chief guest.
Joint General Secretary, Abdur Rahman, Organising Secretary, Herik Hossain, Lokman Hakim, Habibur Rahman, Members Shamim Hossain Abul Hasnat Lablu also addressed the rally among others.
Mentioning that Bidi is a local technology based industry where lakhs of poor workers across the country are working to maintain their livelihoods, speakers demanded immediate step of the government to save the Bidi industry.
Addressing the rally, M K Bangalee said the investment and profit in Bidi industry remains in the country on the other hand in cigarette industry no such worker is needed, BATC could not create remarkable number of employment opportunity here, whereas Bidi industry owners has created huge employment opportunity for poor rural people, so the Bidi workers will stay on the roads to continue agitation until the demands are not met.
“Our demand to the government is to form a commission on Bidi industry where the representatives from the owners, workers bodies and concerned authority of the government will be comprised. And the decision on Bidi industry will be taken through consultation of the stakeholders”, Bangalee said.
He alleged that the government is not increasing tax on Tk 60,000 crore cigarette industry a year but tax is increasing every year on the only Tk 4000 crore Bidi industry.
Workers from different parts of Barisal, joined the road show with motorbike rallies in front of the town hall.
Joint General Secretary, Abdur Rahman said that it’s true that smoking is injurious for health, well, then if Cigarette is allowed then why not Bidi?
The Federation started holding road show earlier in November this year. The road show will take place in Patuakhali on Wednesday.
