Bangladesh: Climate Migrant Farooq Hossain Struggles for Livelihoods from 'Farmer' to 'House-Guard'
The struggle to make a living by going to the cities increased; Changed profession three times
It was raining that day. The sky was overcast. Farooq Hossain's life was also covered in dark clouds that day. He was leaving his home with his wife, daughter and all the household goods. After losing everything in Cyclone Amphan, Farooq Hossain had no chance to live in his own house. His name appears in the list of displaced people. Many more families like Farooq Hossain were silently displaced due to natural calamities. We do not know the trace of most of these families.
Farooq Hossain was waiting with all the household goods in the Nawabeki market of Shyamnagar upazila of Satkhira district in the southwestern part of Bangladesh. Pick up all his goods on a cargo boat. He was going to Khulna city that day with his family members. At that time I met Farooq Hossain. He was telling me the story of losing all his possessions to frequent cyclones. His house is in Chakla village of Pratapnagar union of Asashuni upazila (sub-district) of Satkhira district. Nawabenki market is near that village. From there he left for Khulna forever. And may never return to father's land. Farooq Hossain was crying while telling the story.
Farooq Hossain's house was in Chakla village of Asashuni upazila (sub-district). There he was living in his father's house with five other brothers. Farooq Hussain's children also grew up in that house. Farooq Hossain used to earn his living by farming on his own land. He used to earn extra money by renting motorbikes. His family was doing well. Children have studied comfortably. But frequent cyclones disrupted his normal life. He has faced many cyclones since 1988. Finally Cyclone Amphan on 20 May 2020 forced him to leave his home forever.
Farooq Hossain was forced to leave his home and go to Khulna after Cyclone Amphan. Moving to the city with his family, he faced multiple hurdles. What problems did Farooq Hossain face; He was explaining.
Losses in paddy cultivation: Farooq Hossain started living in Naihati area in Rupsa area of ​​Khulna after being displaced from his home. At first he cultivated paddy jointly with another farmer for livelihood. He took a loan of 12 thousand taka for paddy cultivation. If the yield of rice was good, he could pay off the loan and run the family for a while with the profit. But before the harvest, the paddy fields turn red for unknown reasons. As a result, Farooq gave up the hope of profiting from the yield of rice. He was worried about repaying the loan.
Transfer of rental house: Farooq Hossain moved to a rented house after only two months of living in Khulna. At first he rented a house at a monthly rent of Tk 2700. But due to losses in paddy cultivation and new debts, he could not afford the house rent of Tk 2700. He rented a one-room house for 1200 taka instead of 2700 taka. All household goods, cooking stove and sleeping place in one room. They were living there with difficulty.
Farooq used to sleep on the balcony of the mosque: It was not possible for the six members of the family to sleep in the small one-room house of Farooq Hossain at night. Farooq Hossain could not sleep in his room. At night, after all the family members were asleep, he used to go to the mosque in the neighborhood. After working hard all day he had to sleep on the balcony of the mosque.
Changed profession three times: Farooq Hossain faced a lot of problems for livelihood after going to Khulna city. His two sons are already living in Khulna city. But they both live with family. As a result, it is not possible for them to bear the expenses of the father's family. Farooq Hossain has to choose hard and hazardous labor to earn a living. First, he took the initiative of paddy cultivation jointly based on his old experience. Due to loss and debt in paddy cultivation, he changed profession. Displaced and forced to drive van rickshaw in Khulna city. But at one time Faruk Hossain was a wealthy farmer. He used to cultivate his own land. It was not possible for Farooq Hossain to drive a van rickshaw in the city for a long time. He stopped driving a van rickshaw due to physical ailments. Now he is a house guard in Khulna city.
Farooq did not get help: After Cyclone Amphan, Farooq Hossain was forced to leave his home area along with his family. It was not possible to stay in his area as there were no opportunities for residence and livelihood. But due to absence in the area, these displaced people do not get any help after the cyclone. Farooq Hossain did not get any kind of help after Cyclone Amphan. He is a permanent resident of Chakla Union of Pratapnagar Union of Asashuni Upazila (Sub-District). His name is in the voter list of the Union Council. But there is no allocation in his name.
Not only Farooq Hossain, the life stories of climate migrants are so heartbreaking. Cyclones and various natural calamities make their struggle for life more difficult. They go down to nothing again and again. They have to start life again and again from scratch.