The New Nation - Internet Edition

Tea sector boosts faster enhancing Panchagarh economy

BSS, Rangpur

The growing tea sector has been boosting faster changing the overall socio-economic condition of common people and economy of Panchagarh predicting a brighter prospect of tea sector there.

Local tea growers, chamber leaders and officials opined for setting up of more tea processing industries, competitive markets for tea, resolving problems like gas supply and power crisis to accelerate boosting of the tea sector.

At the same time, hundreds of Panchagarh females, who lived in utter miseries due to abject poverty, are now changing their fates and achieving self-reliance by earning wages as plucking workers in the tea gardens.

The boosting tea sector has ushered in a new hope for further enhancing the standard of their socio-economic life and women empowerment if some problems including just wages were resolved, the female workers said.

Presently, over 7,000 skilled and unskilled workers, mostly women, have been working in 246 tea gardens, including 18 big estates, 13 medium-sized and 215 small-scale gardens set up on more than 2,200 acres of land in Tentulia and its surrounding areas.

Nearly 2,300 workers, mostly women, are working at the giant Kazi and Kazi Tea Estate (KKTE) which has earned reputation at home and abroad by producing the famous Mina Organic Tea and earning foreign exchange.

Small-scale tea farmer Mozahedul Hassan while talking to BSS said he has been farming tea in seven Bigha land after selecting 20 Bighas for the purpose and lifting 100 kg tea leaves every week from his garden.

"I am selling tea leaves at Taka 11 per kg to the tea processing factory of Tentulia Tea Company Ltd (TTCL) and earning almost no profit because of the lower prices and I had to sell the same at only Taka 9.50 per kg last year," he added.

Small-scale tea farmers, Abdur Rahman, Esahaq Ali Mandal, Raju Mia and Motiar Rahman of different villages in Tentulia and Sadar upazilas expressed similar views and demanded green tea- leave price at Taka 15 per kg.

Development Officer of Panchagarh Regional Tea Board Amir Hossain said that there are tremendous scopes for expansion of tea farming area in Panchagarh and Bangladesh Tea Board (BTB) has been providing trainings and supports to the farmers.

"The total tea production by the major companies like the TTCL, KKTE and Kartoa Tea Associates Ltd (KTAL) might be over five lakh tonnes by this year in Panchagarh district," officials said today.

Assistant Manager of TTCL Manjur Hassan said smooth supply of 220-volt power with stable voltage could further help processing and producing tea and tea productioncosts might reduce substantially if natural gas was supplied to the area.

According to the local officials of BTB, the government has taken steps for expanding newer Tea Zones for further increase of tea production in the country to meet the growing demand.

Bangladesh Small Tea Garden Owners' Association (BSTGOA) has been working relentlessly for further develoment of tea sector in Panchagarh by resolving all prevailing problems including the wage problems of the female workers.

"The growing tea sector would emerge as one of the most prospective sectors in sub-Himalayan Panchagarh and its adjoining areas to contribute a lot in the economic develoment of the northern region in near future," he predicted.

1500 activists of BNP, Bikalpadhara join AL

A Correspondent, Thakurgaon

About one thousand and five hundred leaders and workers of BNP and Bikalpo Dhara formally joined AL at an election rally of Thakurgaon Akhanagare Mohajot candidate Ramesh Sen led by Akhanagar union BNP general secretary Roman Badsha.

They declared that they had taken this decision protesting the partisan policy, corruption and misrule of the past 4-party alliance government. Presided over by local AL leader Abul Faruq the meeting was addressed, among others, by Ramesh Sen, Sadek Qurashi, Tito Dutta, Mostafizur Rahman Ripon and Dipak Kumar.

Hasina calls for voting grand alliance candidates

Our Correspondent, Rupganj

Awami League(AL) Chief Sheikh Hasina on Monday called for voting the Rupganj candidate of the Grand Alliance, she leads.

The former prime minister introduced Gazi Golam Dastagir, the Rupganj candidate of the Alliance in the parliamentary election only six days away on December 29.

The AL Chief urged the voters to cast vote in favour of Dastagir for what she said to save the country from the curse of corruption as Hasina committed to eliminate graft and terrorism from the society, if voted to power.

The Grand alliance Chief also promised to lower prices of fertilisers, give subsidy to agriculture, solve the unemployment, one of the major problems of the country, ensure free education up to degree classes.

She said if the alliance voted to power, Rupganj would be made a modern upazila.

She said BNP-Jamaat combine had hands behind rise of Islamic militancy and they are the looters and extortionists, adding she said they plundered billions of state money and smuggled those to foreign countries.

Revolver, bullets recovered in Madaripur

Our Correspondent, Madaripur

Rapid Action Battalon (RAB) -8 CPC-3 of Madaripur, acting on a tip-off, recovered an indigenous revolve, 4 rounds of ammunition of. 22 rifle and one round bullet of Chinese rifle from the house of one Lutfar Rahman Howlader at Purbo Panchkhola village under Sadar Upazila of the district on the night of December 22.

RAB-8 sources said on the basis of secret information, RAB personnel raided the house from all sides. sensing the presence of RAB, Lutfor Rahman Howlader (42) managed to escape. Then RAB personnel, with the help of local people searched the house of Lutfar and recovered the said materials wrapped with a polythene shopping bag.

RAB filed a case under Arms and Ammunition Act with Madaripur Police Station.

Young woman raped at Monirampur

Our correspondent, Monirampur

One teen-aged girl was violated at Monirampur Upazila recently by a Akkas Ali with false promise of marrying the girl, but she was gang-raped.

Police sources and locals said the girl aged about 15 and daughter of abdul Jabbar of Gobindapur village was taken to a nearby Shamnagar village by Akkas Ali but the girl was gang-raped by several persons .

They are Amzad Hossain, son of late Moksed Ali, Hafizur Rahman, son of late Bazlur Rahman of village Sabdia Mazidpur under Keshabpur upazila gang-raped the girl.

A case has been filed with Monirampur police.

Foggy weather paralyses normal life at Rupganj

Our Correspondent, Rupganj

Foggy weather has made normal life paralysed at Rupganj in Narayanganj. The sun is hardly visible during the daytime due to thick fog with shivering cold during day and night for seven days last.

Meanwhile, the sweeping cold has disrupted normal life and has forced many poor people including children to stay inside the house shutting doors and windows. Traffic movement on roads and highways has been obstructed as well as education institutions have been closed down.

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