B.Mirror Desk: Narayanganj Correspondent: The memory of ancestors is always alive in people’s hearts. That is why they protect the graves of their ancestors even at the cost of their lives. People from two villages in Rupganj are worried about the graves of their ancestors. Kazi Mazharul Anwar is one of them. Two graves side by side in the courtyard of the house. His mother lies in one, his brother in the other. He looked at the two graves silently for a while and sighed, “My grandparents had graves in Purbachal. After the government acquisition, they were also demolished and plots were made there. Will my mother’s grave also face the same fate?”
Like Kazi Mazharul Anwar, the old nightmare has returned to the lives of hundreds of people in the Fulbaria, Shimulia, Kuladi and Brahmankhali mouzas of Rupganj in Narayanganj. They lost their land for the Purbachal Suburban Project three decades ago and established new settlements. This time, there are allegations that their land is being acquired again for a special project by a government agency.
Locals claim that about 38.76 acres of land is under the proposed acquisition. As a result, at least 200 families may be directly affected. Thousands of people are in danger of losing their homes, agricultural land, family graveyards and their main source of livelihood.
On Saturday morning, a visit to the relevant areas of Daudpur Union in Rupganj showed that there is a lot of anxiety across the four mouzas. The same question is on the lips of the locals – after leaving their homes once due to a government project and taking shelter elsewhere, will they have to be evicted again?
Local residents said that their ancestral homes and land were acquired for the Purbachal project in the 1990s. Many claim that at that time they had to move elsewhere with nominal compensation. After much difficulty, they built houses in a new place and started their lives through farming and small businesses. Three decades later, that new address is also facing uncertainty.
Locals allege that a high-level delegation of a government agency has visited the area several times in the past month and conducted surprise inspections and surveys. According to the land schedule signed by an official of the agency’s planning department, they have learned that a total of 38.76 acres of land has been planned to be acquired in Raghurampur, Brahmankhali and Kuladi mouzas of Rupganj upazila.
According to the information, 19.21 acres of land is in Raghurampur mouza, 15.85 acres in Brahmankhali mouza and 3.70 acres in Kuladi mouza.
Locals allege that the survey has been conducted secretly without any kind of public hearing or public opinion survey. They fear that if the land is acquired at the government-determined price, the affected families will not be able to buy an equivalent amount of land elsewhere with that money and build a settlement. As a result, they will lose their homestead on the one hand, and their main source of livelihood on the other.
Sayem Bhuiyan, who was evicted once due to the Purbachal project, expressed his anger and said, ‘They are evicting us from Purbachal once. They are trying to evict us again. Aren’t we human beings?
He said, ‘Around 200 families live in this area. There are graves of over a hundred people. There are about 1600 voters. They have children. Where will they go? How will they survive? What will be the future of their children?’
Another victim, Nazrul Islam Molla, said, ‘The suburbs have been eroding our land. I have moved outside the suburbs. If they are harassing us, they will evict us again. Where else will we go?’
According to local farmers, a large portion of the people in the areas under the proposed acquisition are dependent on agriculture. They have been cultivating these lands for years and years and their families are making a living. If they lose their land, they will not only lose their homes, but also their livelihood and source of income.
Losing land is not new to Kazi Mazharul Anwar. He left his ancestral land and home for Purbachal Sub-city and came to Raghurampur Mouza to start a new family. He built a small house on about 500 acres of land. Now that house is also in danger of being demolished due to the proposed project.
On Saturday morning, when he went to his house in Fulbaria village, he saw two graves covered with blue polythene in the yard. One was his mother’s and the other was his brother’s.
Standing next to the two graves, Kazi Mazharul Anwar said, “What kind of country do we live in, a country that cannot provide security for our homes!”
Expressing anger and frustration, he said, “Are we citizens of this country or Rohingya?” If they move us here, where will we go?’
He said, ‘My grandparents’ graves were in Purbachal. After the acquisition, they were demolished and plots were made. Now, my pregnant mother’s grave is also being looked at. How will I visit my mother’s grave if we are moved out?’
Despite various tensions in the family, Kazi Anwar continues to live by clinging to the land. His two daughters are married. One son is in the fifth grade and the other is in the first grade. When he went to his house, he met Kazi Rafin, a first grade student. This student of Hirnal Government Primary School is also afraid – how will his studies continue if they are evicted from their house?
Elderly Abdul Matin, a resident of Shimulia village, said, ‘We are living by clinging to the land of our parents. Where will we go if we leave this land? A government agency wants to evict us with nominal compensation. It is not possible to buy a single piece of land anywhere else with that money.’
Locals claim that the farmers, daily wage earners and small traders of the area will be the worst affected by the proposed acquisition. If the farmers lose their land, they will become unemployed, and many families will have to face a new uncertainty after losing their homes.
According to the Upazila Election Office, the concerned MOUs of Raghurampur and Katiadi areas