Enthusiasm for juicy pithas waning
It is winter, a season for enjoying various kinds of juicy pithas (cakes) prepared with date juice, but the juice has become very rare in the district due to cutting down of date trees.
“Date trees are cut mainly for burning in the brick kilns,” said Rajapur Upazila Forest Officer Md Alamgir Hossain Khan.
Fourteen to sixteen percent of date trees were cut down or destroyed per year in the last five years, according to the forest office. If this continues, the trees will soon disappear from the area, he said, adding that many birds have lost their shelters and source of food.
Production of date juice has decreased by 15 to 18 percent per year in the last five years, Alamgir said.
“A small jar of the juice was sold for Tk 30 to Tk 40 five years ago, while it is Tk 100 to Tk 120 now,” said Sabur.
“I collected 15 to 20 jars of juice per day in winter some years ago, while I can collect only three to five jars now,” said Nuralom, a juice collector of Indrapasha in Rajapur.
People are not interested in planting date trees as they cannot be sold in the wood market like other trees, said forest officer Alamgir.
“A proposal has been sent to the higher authorities for planting date trees in coastal areas and the district will get around one lakh date plants after the proposal is passed,” he added.
“About 85 to 90 percent of the trees have disappeared from the area within the last few years, and date juice is not available in any market, though the area would be flooded with the juice in winter five to six years ago,” said Prof Md Shamsul Alam Babul Gazi of Rajapur Degree College.
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