Democracy through blockade too costly for day labourers
Nowadays day labourer Mosharraf Hossain does not care if he is paid half of what he usually gets as long as he can earn money.
He is just one of the countless people suffering from the non-stop hartal and blockade enforced by the BNP-led alliance.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The only breadwinner of his family, Mosharraf dropped out of class VIII last year to support his seven-member family.
Mosharraf came to the capital in search of work after they lost their 62 decimals of land to river erosion in Bhola.
"Every week, I have to send Tk 2,000 to my family and for that I am willing to work for even Tk 200 per day," he said, adding that usually he gets Tk 400 to Tk 500 per day.
Mosharraf said he is even willing to work throughout the night if he cannot get jobs during the day.
"I have cut down my own expenses to save money," said Mosharraf who lives in a mess at Bou Bazar near Alam Market.
Another day labourer, Kabir Hossain, had to borrow Tk 1,100 from relatives as he only managed work on three days in the whole month of February.
"My income was better in January as I worked on 17 days in that month," he said.
The picture is the same for Yunus Khan, a painter, who was found waiting for work near Setu Market in Jurain.
Yunus only worked for seven days in January and six days in February.
Every day around 500 day labourers, masons, painters and carpenters come to Setu Market looking for work but only about 50 to 60 people get jobs, said Zakir Hossain, a day labourer living in Jurain.
Zakir said he needs to send Tk 5,000 to his family in Netrakona every month but he has failed to do so in January and February.
Mizanur Rahman, acting president of Imarot Nirman Shramik Union Bangladesh, said 85 percent of day labourers remain jobless every day due to the non-stop blockade and hartal.
He said these people [day labourers] are not involved in politics at all and all they want is to work in peace but they end up paying a very high price for something that is out of their control.
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