Vow for eradicating dowry in building flourishing char society

They also committed to continue resisting dowry, child marriage, polygamy, divorce, violence, repression, rooting out gender discrimination, human trafficking and educating their children to make them worthy citizens to lead the nation in future

The chair people of all ages, including the young generations, committed this at the community fair organised to create social awareness for development and entertain the socially backward people living in remote char areas on the Teesta riverbed.

RDRS Bangladesh organised the fair under Chars Livelihood Programme (CLP) with financial assistances of the Department for International Development and Government of Bangladesh in remote Tapur Char village under Kawnia upazila.

Stalls were installed in the fair displaying health care, hygiene and sanitation, satellite clinic, consultation on malnutrition, display and sales of personal hygiene and health materials for adolescents, exhibition of agro-and livestock products produced in char villages using latest technologies, handicrafts, market facilitating and development activities, eradication of social curses etc.

Many other achievements of RDRS Bangladesh and CLP were also displayed in the fair for expediting overall development of the char people to improve their livelihoods as well as life standard through creating social awareness and amusement.

Chairman of local Tepamadhupur union parishad Alim Uddin formally inaugurated the fair as the chief guest with President of Tapur Char Village Development Committee (VDC) and local union parishad member Abdul Kuddus in the chair.

District Infrastructure Development Officers (CLP) Mesbahul Alam and Sarwar Hossain, Upazila Coordinator of CLP Debashish Paul and Additional Director of Rangpur Community Medical College and Hospital Mirajul Muhsin addressed as the special guests.

Programme Manager (CLP) Shafikur Rahman and Community Development Supervisor Rezaul Karim of CLP also addressed the ceremony moderated by its Training Officer Jiban Kumar Podder.

Besides, cost-free blood group tests and dowry-free marriages were conducted and free medicare services with medicines and legal aids were provided among the char people.

In addition, 50 couples of various age groups of different remote char villages under Mornea union also registered their marriages after 5 to 40 years of marriages before a discussion meeting was held there.

In the open discussion, some male and female char villagers narrated as how they have successfully changed fortune through income-generation activities, animal husbandry, poultry, handicrafts, homestead gardening, self- employment etc under CLP assistances.

They said the successes were achieved through awareness building activities, training and meetings conducted in building social awareness against all social curses including dowry in the remote char areas by members of the VDC and adolescents groups.

Later, the char people of all ages enjoyed ‘Potgan’, ‘Gambhira’, ‘Gononatok’ etc on the CLP activities rendered and staged by the artists of cultural organisation ‘Rupantor’ of Khulna in a colourful cultural evening there.