The scenario of Slum: A Touching Story of Minara Begum

There are a number of families living in the extremely vulnerable condition in the slum areas of Dhaka city. I was visiting a slum area in Dhaka and found a woman in her late thirties who shared the pathetic story of her life:

My name is Minara Begum and I am a housewife. We live in a slum of Anandanagar area in Mirpur-1, Dhaka. I have two children and they are my son Rasel who is 11 years old and my daughter Jannatul is 9 years old. Both they are studying in OCCMSP center operated by ADRA Bangladesh.

The hardest chapter in my life started when I came to know that my husband got another wife and children in his life. He cheated with me and he never told me about it. I loved him and we got married. After several years of our marriage, I was noticing that he seldom comes to visit us and diminishing the financial support gradually.

When my husband clogged financial support, I drowned into despair. How could I survive as I was a helpless housewife! There was no one who can help me. I was looking for a job frantically to support my family. I found a hope when I got a job in the garments factory. As I had no prior experience, my earning was so poor and was inadequate to support my family. I could not afford my children the nutritious meal, I could not even arrange some good quality clothes for them. After paying the house rent, there had been nothing left in my hand.

Hardships never left me alone! In 2016 I had Pulmonary Tuberculosis disease and I had to leave the job. I had been suffering from Pulmonary Tuberculosis for one year. In 2016 I had been treated with medicine by the support from government and BRAC but I did not get well completely. Due to recurrence of Pulmonary Tuberculosis, I got admitted into Hospital in 2017.

Now, I am under treatment for the last two months in Mohakhali T.B. Hospital. Being ill, how can I afford the meal for my family? As I could not pay for one-year house rent, house owner may kick me out of his house.

I am very worried thinking about the future of my children. Who will look after them? How can they continue their study? What will they eat? Thousands of questions are coming in my mind. I cannot bear this torment anymore.

This is just a scenario of slum areas in Dhaka city. There might be thousands of families living in more viler condition than Minara Begum, who knows!