Ridita and Saifan wait for chocolate that will never come: grief grips five Jajira traders' homes after Natore crash
Five of the 14 people killed in Tuesday dawn's head-on collision between a bus and a sand-laden truck in Baraigram, Natore, were traders from Jajira upazila in Shariatpur. They had left home together in search of livelihood; they returned as lifeless bodies. Five families are now left with nothing but grief and questions over an uncertain future.
The five Jajira traders, including Jewel Madbar, died when a bus and a sand-laden truck collided head-on at the Sarkarpara section of the Natore-Pabna highway in the Bonpara area of Baraigram upazila, Natore. A total of 14 people were killed in the accident, which took place at dawn on Tuesday (20 October), and 30 others were injured.
The story of one of the five is now moving everyone to tears. Four-year-old Ridita and two-year-old Saifan still do not know that their father will never return. Before leaving home, their father Jewel Madbar had hugged them and promised to bring chocolate for them on his way back. For the two little children, that promise was a joyful wait. But the next morning came the news of his death.
The night before, Jewel had phoned his elder brother Shahjahan Madbar. He said he would travel to Natore on business; they would all board a bus from the foot of the Padma Bridge, bound for Taherpur in Rajshahi, to buy maize and other agricultural produce. The conversation was entirely ordinary. Who knew it would be the last conversation of his life with his brother!
Shahjahan Madbar said: 'Last night Jewel phoned me and said he would go to Natore to buy maize. I asked him, how will you go? He said they would all board the bus together from the foot of the Padma Bridge. Then in the morning I got a call — my brother had died in Natore. The brother I spoke to at night; in the morning I heard he was no more.'
At that home in Barkandi Union of Jajira upazila, Shariatpur, Jewel's wife Mousumi Akter is now numb with grief. And for Ridita and Saifan, the meaning of their father's absence is still unclear. They keep asking their mother, 'Where is Baba, Ma, when will he come?' The adults know that this wait will never end.
Jewel Madbar had been doing business in the Kazirhat area of Jajira for nearly two decades. Alongside his grocery (bhusamal) business, he was also involved in the rod and cement trade, and had built a reputation in the local market over the years. About a year ago, Jewel's father also died. As the family was trying to return to normal life after that loss, this accident has now taken away the family's earning member.
Along with Jewel, four more traders from Jajira upazila lost their lives. They are Salal Molla of Dubisaybar Mollakandi area, Sohag Shikder of Dubisaybar Kazirhat area, Samad Fakir of Kazirhat area, and Shahin Bepari of Kathuria area in Palerchar Union.
Salal Molla was the son of Jahan Uddin Molla. Sohag Shikder was the son of Yunus Shikder. Shahin Bepari was the son of Razzak Bepari. Samad Fakir was a grocery trader of the Kazirhat area, while Shahin Bepari was involved in the turmeric business.
According to local sources, all five victims had been doing business in Kazirhat and nearby areas of Jajira for a long time. They were travelling to Taherpur in Rajshahi on business, with plans to buy maize, onions, garlic, coriander and other agricultural produce. Their families ran on the income of these five traders; their wives' and children's dreams and future plans revolved around them.
According to survivor Alamgir Madbar, after a journey break the bus was being driven recklessly. He claimed the driver appeared drowsy, and passengers had warned him and requested him to slow down. Later, the bus collided head-on with a sand-laden truck coming from the opposite direction.
The sudden death of five traders from the same area has cast a shadow of grief over Kazirhat and surrounding areas of Jajira. They had begun the journey together out of the need to earn a living, but their journey ended before they could reach their destination. Left behind are waiting families, unfinished dreams and an uncertain future.
Alongside the bereavement, the upazila administration has assured the victims' families of standing beside them. Jajira Upazila Nirbahi Officer Al-Imran has given that assurance. But beyond immediate assistance, the families face a long road: having lost those whose income ran the households, everything from meeting daily expenses to ensuring the children's education and future must now be rethought by the relatives.
Beyond road accident statistics, every death carries with it a separate household, countless memories and future plans — and this incident is a cruel example of that. Jewel may have thought he would return from his business trip and put chocolate in his children's hands. But that promise will remain unfulfilled — and in Ridita and Saifan's childhood, the place of waiting for their father will remain a deep, irreparable emptiness.
