24 families in Burichong's Haripur protest move to acquire triple-crop land for a technical college

Members of 24 farming families held a press conference in Cumilla's Burichong Upazila protesting the initial move to acquire triple-crop land at Haripur village to build a technical school and college. The press conference was held on Sunday at the Burichong Press Club.

The families allege that if the proposed land is acquired, they will lose their only source of livelihood and become landless and helpless. They said they would give their lives if necessary to protect the land, and sought the prime minister's urgent intervention to reconsider the acquisition decision and build the institution on alternative land.

Mohammad Rabiul Hasan read out a written statement on behalf of the villagers at the press conference. Nehara Khatun, Alamgir Hossain, Farid Mia and several other residents of Haripur village were present.

The written statement said the land initially selected for acquisition to build the technical school and college at Haripur is entirely triple-crop land. Many poor families of the area earn their living by producing crops on this land several times a year; their household income, their children's education and their daily lives are directly tied to farming.

The farmers say the proposed land is not merely farmland to them, but their only means of survival. Most of the landowners are financially insolvent — some are auto-rickshaw drivers, some rickshaw pullers or in ordinary occupations.

The statement added that the proposed acquisition threatens to leave 24 families completely landless and homeless. If they lose the land, their farming will stop and their income opportunities will shrink, making it hard for the families to meet basic needs such as food, medical care and their children's education.

The farming families demand that instead of triple-crop land, the fallow and uncultivated land in the area could be considered for building the institution at Haripur. They say using alternative land would make it possible both to implement the institution-building initiative and to protect the livelihoods and homesteads of the poor farming families.

They allege that a quarter has deliberately selected this land to render the helpless farming families landless.

From the press conference they submitted memorandums to Prime Minister Tarek Rahman, Cumilla-5 MP Haji Jasim Uddin, the Cumilla deputy commissioner, the land acquisition officer, the Burichong upazila nirbahi officer, the assistant commissioner (land), the officer-in-charge of Burichong police station and the Burichong Press Club.

At the press conference, the families drew the attention of the government's relevant authorities to protecting their land and ensuring their future security.