Once, mach (fish) and bhat (rice) were so abundant that they were, so to speak, identical with the Bengali race. And now, more and more species of fishes are getting beyond the reach of general people mainly due to exorbitant prices. Then again, fishes have been turned into virtual poison-pills by some unscrupulous traders, in absence of — barring a few abrupt raids — strict and consistent interventions. And also there is no reason to think that traders are selling these formalin-treated and other poisonous items at a reasonable rate.

Rather, we are buying death or deadly diseases and that too, at a very high price. Reportedly, 98 percent of the fish available in the markets are treated with formalin and other toxic chemicals. Same is the case with many other food items ranging from various types of fruits to milk, fruit juice, drinks, fast food items and so on.

The adulteration extravaganza reaches its peak during the month of Ramadan. But it persists throughout the year. Chemicals intended for textile use and lubricants intended for vehicles are used extensively for making delicious food items. Formalin — basically used for preserving dead bodies — is not being used for preserving fishes only; it is increasingly being used for preserving other food items, vegetables, fruits, milk, etc.

Strangely the issue, however serious it is, has not yet received the attention it deserves from either the government or the people in general. A strange sense of benumbed acceptance seems to have taken over us.

According to doctors, formalin-treated fishes and other food items are largely responsible for various diseases. Apart from normal stomach-related diseases, other ailments these poisonous food items are responsible of are skin diseases, renal failure, liver cirrhosis, asthma, cancer and so on. Yes, even looking at formalin-treated fishes can cause damage to corneas. Inhalation can cause lung and throat cancer while touching it can cause skin diseases. Thus, formalin-users are also susceptible to its damaging effects. Though diseases like diarrhoea, dysentery can be diagnosed and treated rather quickly and easily, more serious diseases that take time to infect our bodies become more difficult to cure.

Physicians have rightly raised their fingers at food adulteration and toxicity as major causes of increasing number of deformed children. The deformity can be both physical as well as mental. Reportedly, the number of physically and mentally handicapped children has increased lately and only the sufferers know how agonising the lives of such children and their families can be.

General people want relief from this but they have very few options to resort to. They do not have the mechanism to detect adulteration in food items. There were not even a formalin-kit and it was only in the recent past that the scientists from our Science Laboratory came up with one. Follow-up is, however, missing to a degree.

In this land of teeming millions, the masses are hostages to the traders. And, some traders are playing with the lives of general people capitalising on this. The anti-adulteration drives are few and far between and also it hasn’t created the desired impact on the traders for they don’t seem to have stopped their toxic business even after being punished. Reportedly, many revert to former tricks even after being punished. A vicious cycle of adulteration seems to have developed which needs to be debunked through rigorous actions.

On no grounds should the adulterators be shown leniency. Formulation of a stringent anti-adulteration act and strict execution of it is the need of the hour to save us and the younger generation from being poisoned everyday.

If people are forced to take in adulterated food incessantly, there might not be enough healthy and intelligent people left or forthcoming to represent a sane and sound society in near future.

—————-
Kazi S M Khasrul Alam Quddusi is the chairman, Department of Public Administration, University of Chittagong

However, we should not forget the fact that we are living merely on their mercy. Their orientation as well as temperament towards people implies nothing less than this. Feudalism became history centuries ago. But, is it an overstatement that our leaders still deem the country to be their fiefdom and the people and resources of the country to be their spoils? So, they are at liberty to treat the masses however they feel comfortable.

They have, however, unity in diversity and that is in the job of exploiting common people. Interestingly, tedious platitudes are their weapons for which we fall consistently. They claim to have the license and wherewithal to save our sovereignty, democracy, liberty, religion and what not. Would you mind my saying that many of them might well be the forerunners in fleeing the country once sovereignty and territory of the country is assaulted by some mighty forces?

Most of our leaders remain heavily guarded by cadres. The masses find it difficult to even approach them. Their sons and cadres extort us heavily and many of them enjoy a good portion of the booty. Their sons and cadres grab people’s property at will. They are to be regularly greased for public services especially in getting allotment of lands, ration, etc. Their relatives and cadres claim to ensure jobs for the unemployed ones in exchange of money and rob many of everything.

Their cadres unleash reign of terror in their localities and beyond. Their cadres assist in killing and call it bluff when it comes to nabbing the accused ones. They even nurture and back up militants to supplant law enforcing agencies. What a civilised cum democratic polity has been presented to us by our champions of democracy! Should we stop short of calling it tyranny personified in the name of nurturing nascent democracy?

They come to power, they lose power and they again come to power. We often get slightly cross with them at their perceived negligence for us. We at times exude our frustration and anger. They use their guiles to assuage our anguish. They again dish out promises. We resolve to teach them a good lesson. However, our determination evaporates before it is mature. Another election approaches and we again crowd the polling booths to vote for most of the seasoned impostors.

They brutalise our hopes and aspirations and pile up assets. They keep on deceiving us and we continue to believe in them all in the hope for betterment of our lot. We look to them in such a servile manner that our lot hinges upon their sweet will. Actually, previous observation is true to some extent as we rely upon them to rule the country and repose in them all our trust and hopes.

Whenever we are faced with a difficulty, we start entreating them with folded hands and they tend to relish our predicament. When misfortune befalls us even for their faults, they remain more interested in justifying their false position than in mitigating our sufferings. They also invariably resort to innovative jokes to laugh off our miseries.

To be precise, most of them can stoop to anything for getting their ends fulfilled. Even after such hammerings, we are not reluctant to worship them because they are the messiahs (!); but, their brand of democracy has by now become so heavy that we are persistently being bruised under it. We are gasping for breath but no respite seems in sight as there seems to be no escape from their ever-expanding grip.

The questions haunt me whether their pervasiveness is a necessary evil. Can’t we really trigger a change in their nature? In fact, we can and we can do it exceptionally well. I believe the people hold the key to bringing the derailed leaders and incumbents to their knees. Our independence is hard-earned and so is our democracy. Democracy has provided us with the very weaponry whereby we can make them mend their ways.

Coming out of the stereotyped absentee landlord role, we can very well assert ourselves to be as real owners. For that to happen, however, we have to grasp the true meaning of democracy in that it is not just consigning power from one group of suckers to another. We will also have to be ruthless in dumping the tyrant leaders while being unswerving in nurturing and promoting the good ones.

—————————-

Kazi S M Khasrul Alam Quddusi is the chairman, Department of Public Administration, University of Chittagong.