'Increase wage, time for registration'

Leaders of Bangladesh Land Workers Association (BLWA) yesterday demanded wage hike and extension of time for registration of beneficiaries under the government's 100-day employment generation programme. The time ends on August 31.
They also protested alleged bribery of union parishad (UP) members and chairmen across the country in enlisting the name of the beneficiaries under the programme, and demanded their punishment.
The BLWA leaders were speaking at a press conference at the central office of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) in the city.
They said the UP members and chairmen were assigned to identify the beneficiaries and send their list for getting final registration.
But the UP members and chairmen in most areas are preparing the list taking Tk 500 to 1000 in bribe from each proposed beneficiary assuring them of giving job card, they alleged.
The BLWA leaders said the task of identifying and selecting the beneficiaries was to be carried out in public places in association with religious leaders, teachers and elites of the society, but in reality the selection was done by UP members and chairmen in exchange for bribe.
They called for raising the number of beneficiaries under the programme to 50 lakh from 20 lakh, and said Tk 100 for each beneficiary per day is very poor in view of the present price spiral of essential commodities.
They demand a hike of the amount to Tk 150 from 100.
The government will launch the special 100-day employment generation programme involving Tk 2000 crore in mid-October as a guarantee scheme for the unemployed poor people in rural areas.
The main focus of the programme will be 44 districts including the Monga-prone and coastal ones.
Under the programme, 20 lakh people, mostly from the 44 districts, will be given jobs for the development of rural infrastructure, their maintenance and repair work.
They will get Tk 100 a day.
Jobs for 20 days a month will be created for each person, thus providing the poor with 100 days' job over five months.
BLWA President Shamsuzzaman Selim, Secretary Ramendra Borman and Anwar Hossen Reza also spoke at the press conference.