Poppadums make their life easier
Each morning, Dinajpur town's Jogenbabur Math becomes a hive of activity. From an early hour, women from disadvantaged families arrive at the field to start rolling poppadums.
Made from lentils and spices, the snack and side dish alternatively named as papad or papar has long been enjoyed across South Asia. Poppadums are also common in the West where they have become a well-established part of South Asian restaurant fare. Given the ease of final preparation, with the finished papars needing only to be fried in oil, the item is also increasingly enjoyed in western homes.
At the field, traders supply raw materials, which are powdered and distributed for rolling. The flattened poppadums are then dried in sunlight. Once dry, the their breads are ready for marketing.
By mid-morning much of Jogenbabur Math is covered with drying poppadums.
Trader Omesh Saha employs up to 100 women in the task with others involved in packing the product. “A woman can roll up to 6 kilograms per day,” he says.
The women are currently paid 10 taka for every 100 poppadums rolled. “Each worker can make 500-800 per day,” says Saha, an effort that brings an average monthly income of about 2500 taka. They work about six hours per day.
The flexible working hours and daily payment system have made the emerging cottage industry popular with women, who can earn that much needed extra bucks while managing household responsibilities. Poppadum rolling is also possible to do from home, which suits young mothers.
Besides, food preparation experience learnt at home helps most women to complete the task quickly and effectively. “I don't think many men could compete with the skill of women's hands,” says trader Biren Das.
Minoti Rani Das has been rolling poppadums for ten years. When she started, the rate was 2 taka for 100 poppadums. “It has helped me a lot,” she says, “I hope to keep doing it forever.”
“The best thing is that I can work from home,” says Das, “as much as I like without feeling pressure. I don't have to worry about marketing or buying raw materials.”
Purnima Das of Barabandar has been rolling poppadums for the last six years. “My earnings have helped me send my two children to school,” she says. At weekends and during school holidays her ten-year-old daughter Dolla, studying in class III, enjoys helping her mother to roll poppadums on the roadside in front of their home.
“Perhaps 400 women in this area are involved,” says another worker, Jayanti Rani Das.
President of Dinajpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry told the Daily Star that poppadums have become important in supporting thousands of families by providing workplaces in or nearby homes. “Around 1500 families in the district generate income this way,” he says.
Meanwhile, the popularity of the product, which is sold across Bangladesh and has export potential, has made poppadums as synonymous with Dinajpur as kataribhog rice and lychees.
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