Cleaners skeptical about NGOs working for them

An NGO staff teaches children of cleaners at a makeshift school at the Telegu community neighbourhood at Dayaganj in Dhaka.— Ali Hossain Mintu

Ershad Kamol

Cleaners in Dhaka complain that many of the NGOs working in their slums are simply ‘doing business’ and are not working to improve their living conditions.

They said that many of the NGOs provide them microcredit simply to make profit  and not to help improve  their living conditions.

The cleaners, as the sweepers are now officially called, said that some of the small NGOs which run microcredit programmes, with local or foreign funding, charge interests at exorbitant rates, sometimes as high as 40 per cent.

Some of these NGOs also run education, health, and

safe water projects in the slums where Kanpuri and Madrassi cleaners live, they added

The Kanpupris and the Madrassis have been cleaners for generations, unlike the Bangalis, who took to the profession only recently.

‘A foreign NGO that does not operate in Bangladesh anymore had opened a collective savings account for our women at Ganoktuli, but the account holders never received the money they had deposited when this NGO stopped its activities,’ Bangladesh Harijan Oikkya Parisad general secretary Nirmal Chandra Das told New Age.

‘Health and education programmes run by these NGOs don’t help us much, because they are often wound up abruptly without any notice,’ he said.

‘In fact, most of the NGOs, except the big ones, approach us for their own benefits,’ said Harijan Oikya Parishad president Krisna Lal.

He favoured the bigger NGOs who ‘provide us technical support in our negotiations with the government,’ he said.

‘We want the NGOs to provide us vocational training, not loans,’ said Krishna Lal.

He said that the NGOs running programmes for the cleaners are either affiliated with the NGO Affairs Bureau or with the government’s Department of Social Welfare.

The NGO Affairs Bureau does not, said its information officer, keep sector wise information on health and education projects run by NGOs for the cleaners.

‘As each project is multi dimensional, it’s not possible for us to provide specific statistics on funds spent on a specific sector for a particular community’,  NGO Affairs Bureau deputy director AKM Moazzem Hossain told New Age. 

‘And we don’t have any information about the locally funded NGOs affiliated with the Department of Social Welfare which run such programmes,’ he said.

The Department of Social Welfare also could not give any information on funds spent by NGOS on education, health, sanitation and safe water projects for the cleaners.

 Welfare Minister Enamul Hoque Mostafa Shaheed told New Age that the government was keen to work more closely with the NGOs to make their programmes more effective in improving the living conditions of the cleaners.

‘We are holding discussions with the NGOs to find out a better plan for the welfare of the cleaners and other marginal communities,’ he said.

Manusher Jonno Foundation executive director Shaheen Anam told New Age that the foundation provides technical support to the Harijan cleaners in their negotiations with the government for their rights.

She admitted that the NGOs running programmes for the cleaners had some limitations as they were dependent on donor funding for the projects.

 ‘They cannot continue projects if the donors stop the funding support,’ she said.

Shaheen Anam, however, said that the NGOs should take comprehensive projects instead of sector wise projects.

She also said that the cleaners have to fight for themselves to bring about better living conditions and rights ‘We can only help them go ahead.’    

Source: newagebd.com/newspaper1

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Some problems with the face in enthusiasm about EVM

Voters were excited about the use of electronic voting machines, but a good number of older and uneducated people faced with difficulties, her voice with the device in the Narayanganj City Corporation polls on Sunday instead.

Voters after casting their votes with EVMs expressed a mixed reaction to the introduction of the device.

Voters, the difficulties in the production of her voice said that she was raised not on the device before its introduction.

Many of them said that they were happy about the new device, while most of them questioned whether she had voted for the candidate of their choice.

A voter at the Adamjinagar school polling station, two voices, said one of the polling agents.

Voters, particularly elderly people, blaming the EVM for his ' complications 'in the production of the vote."

Admitted to the high school Center Chairman Mazharul Islam Dhanakundu popular, that the voters had difficulties in the production of her voice. He said that the voters about the use of electronic voting machines should have trained.

Voters said that it had taken more time for her, her voice with the device, and many of them were sceptical whether the people of their choice with the machine voted, could.

The EVM have disable not the icons and it creates complications in the vote, she has.

An EVM used in the Centre of Haji Sirajuddin Memorial in 23 malfunction Ward three times. Officials Mozammel Haque, said, that one of the machines was gone kaput, but there was no major incident.

Rina, was looking for in the Centre of Srama Kalyan Kendra retrieve, help from election workers, say that they don't know how to use the machine.

Rabiul Hasan on same central said new age ' took more than a minute and a half for me, my voice. The symbols were not clear. "At least six voters in the Center made similar complaints."

Shamsul Haque, an other voters Ward 18, that voice, said its in the Centre of Sitalakhya primary school, that he his voice fate skeptical. "I have doubts whether my vote would be counted."

Asia Begum at the Kumudini welfare trust of the Bengal Centre in Ward 18, said that they are trying had time three, his voice.

In all cases, the election officials showed the human voice with the machine.

Twenty-six-year-old Rajiv that, Government primary school, working with a private organization, in the middle of the Sitalakhya said that he was happy that he could his voice with the electronic voting machine, in a very short time. He took a break from working on his voice to make.

Presiding officer Mehedi Hasan Srama Kalyan Kendra polling Center, said that older people had some problems in the production of her voice

Older women said that she lacked training in the matter. Retrieve the Haji Sirajuddin Memorial Centre presiding officer Mozammel Haque and Kumudini welfare trust of Bengal Centre Chairman Monir Hossain also against older women.

The three presidential officers, however aside accusations of election symbols which not in the electronic ballot is. They said, was that the system was transparent and vote it less time on the case with the machines.

A total of 34 votes with EVMs Nabiganj girls' high school centre in Bandar were not counted, as those were transformed into demo mode of the machine, "marked off".

Assistant President of a polling booth in the Center began polling in demo mode and reporters found that in demo mode, the votes were cast, finished the officer rushed to retrieve.

The officer later retrieve with the EVMs after deletion of the vote, which had already thrown and the voices were added to the total number.

The wizard Chair officers, Shanaj aktar, said that it had happened "accidentally" as the technology for them was new.

Polling, remained, however, stopped for an hour the EVM out of order, went in a different polling station in Bandar.

About 1,48,000 voters in nine of the 27 stations 58 centres were planned, in consultation with EVMs in 450 stalls. A total of 1,400 election monitors were used trained EVM.

The Commission previously not voters consider the Narayanganj City Corporation its orientation program, which they on EVM used to educate, as the Commission had trained voters for days.

In June, EVMs were 79 stands 14 centres in one ward in the Chittagong City Corporation surveys used in. A total 25.230 people voted there.

Source: newagebd.com/newspaper1

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Bangla Academy, to keep talk about Nazrul

United States news of Bangladesh. Dhaka

The Bangla Academy organizes a program in his Seminar Hall the 35th today death anniversary of the poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Professor Rafiqul Islam deliver a talk about the Nazrul life and its contribution to the Bangla literature at 11: 00, a release said.

Bangla Academy Chairman Professor Kabir Chowdhury is lecture meeting Chair.

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| Source: newagebd.com