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Dhaka Day by Day

Fuss about Food

by Iftikhar Ahmed Chowdhury
Hunger has let its presence known always and tn the most unlikely limes and places In man s battle against this, which pull from within the stomach. It has always been hunger that has won Even hermits, yogis or shadhaks who practice restraint over all kinds of worldly desires shared considcrabk- interest In food In filling the gaping hole of the stomach, man has through the ages proved his slavish obedience So right food at the right moment remains as one of the fundamental need for mankind
But the offtccgo- । ers of Dhaka, who attend a nine-to-five office find difficulty I In solving their need ' for food during the 1 lunchtime. Some j a characteristic «w- t rsion to food can do with less. But those who feel uneasy and incomplete without a full course meal j have now-a-days I arranged a unique I way that serves both I
They usually cm- I ploy a needy teenage I boy. who is known I to them, to carry I their tiffins to their I places of work al 1 lunchtime from I their home for u I very nominal mon- I thly salary. Moreover I the boy is not cm- I ployed individually. I but collectively. Say I abiul ten or more I Inmates of an office I employ the same boy ■ to carry their food. Each pays about taka fifty al the end of the month to the boy and their purposes arc mutually served. Those who , prefer home-made food can do enough
to please their gustatory faculty and an unemployed is blessed with the opportunity to earn a small, though very useful income
One thing his employers make sure Is that the boy's identity Is known to them. Because most of these food-puritans apprehend Ihat the boy may disappear or escape with their tiffin carriers or boxes, which are usually expensive. Perhaps, some do not slop fearing that the contents of those boxes might as well vanish. But such cases arc very rnrc. Because to the boy his job 1. more important than the tiffin carriers or the food that only temporarily gets into those boxes.
"Our saviour Is Anukul. a fifteen-year-old boy.” says Anisur Rahman, an Insurance executive with a contented smile. "We were fed-up with the under-quality food served in most of the restaurants at Motljhecl and what Is more, that tt look a heavy toll on our purse So. I along with seven of my other colleagues decided to employ Anukul. who Is a nephew to one of our office or dcrlies. to carry our lunch from home Collectively we pay him an amount of taka six hundred at the end of the month Although not much, tt keeps Anukul and his family a little well-off, I suppose He is very punctual. But at the beginning when once or twice he reached the office late, we doubted his arrival at all. But
gradually he ha* gained our confidence. Now we know that at lunchtime he Is going to be here for sure.'
However, speaking to Anukul we learnt that he was not so much content with his employers, as they were with him. A sharp chap Anukul softly complains, They pay me six hundred taka collectively. But you see, some of them live quite far away. They should actually pay me according to the distance from their home to the office. I can’t hop on board a bus with all those loaded tiffin boxes. So either I have to walk or I may come by a rickshaw But availing a rickshaw everyday would coat twice the amount they pay me. So my only alternative is to walk."
Apart from salary. Is there any other benefit that he receives from his employers? "Well, after they arc done with lunch, they allow me to have the left ove-
rs. Still, there arc a couple of shahebs’ who arc very generous. They do not give me leftovers. but they give some food from their's before they start to cat. So I usually enjoy a good meal. If the left-overs arc in abundance, I pack them Into a polythene bag and take it home with me. Al home we cannot afford food quite so well. I have two younger brothers who await eagerly to see what 1 have brought for them. If they see me reach home empty-handed their faces become gloomy So 1 try my best to take something for them,” concludes Anukul. who from his very* tender age has known the sordid fact that he has to struggle hard to sustain. Even if that struggle meant carrying food for people, while his family members starved — an irony no one would appreciate better than Anukul