Of broken promises and unmet expectations

Citing insurmountable losses, nine jute mills in Khulna region, including the country's second largest one, abruptly shut down operation in July 2020.

The move left over 30,000 workers of the jute mills unemployed overnight, leaving them in the face of a bleak, uncertain future.

Over the past three years since the mills' closure, the workers have been living amid an acute financiala hardship, grappling to make both ends meet.

Nasima Akhtar, 47, was one of them.

After 16 years of service as a shift worker, she found herself caught in this harsh reality. To make the matter worse, her husband abandoned her and her two children.

The family is now struggling to remain afloat amid an encapsulating financial uncertainty.

"I got Tk 1,14,000 when the mill was closed. How long will it last? Now I am working in different houses. With meagre earnings, even after toiling for all day long, it is hard just to manage the daily essentials," Nasima lamented.

"House owners, fearing our financial instability, opt to keep houses vacant instead of renting to us," she added.

Khalishpur, once a vibrant area being inhabited by many jute mill workers, now bears witness to countless "to-let" signs, while many workers are living miserably in slums near the jute mills, with hope that someday they will get their jobs back.

The jute mill compounds in Daulatpur and Khalishpur areas now wear a deserted look, with dilapidated buildings, abandoned workers' colonies, and an eerie ambience while being engulfed by weeds and shrubs.

One of those is the Crescent Jute Mill, established in 1956, which had 3,800 permanent and 2,000 temporary workers.

Due to lack of maintenance, the once-vibrant mill compound now resembles a haunted place, standing alone as witness to broken promises and unmet expectations. Hundreds of looms lie rusted and partially dismantled in its factory building-2.

Sohrab Hossain, convenor of state-run jute mills' workers' association, validated the workers' grievances and emphasised on the failure of the authorities to properly settle their dues.

The authorities had promised resuming operations, but went on to evict the workers instead, leaving them to endure immense financial hardships, he said.

"While jute products are being valued across the world, our state-run jute mills are either remaining closed or given to private sector, which is unacceptable," said Kudrat E Khuda, president of Sammilito Nagorik Porishad, Patkal Rokkha.

"Almost 64 jute mills including Mohini mill of Kushtia did not function after being given to private sector," he added.

The Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation, meanwhile, claimed that all jute mills will soon become functional after those are leased to private stakeholders and modernised.

It had made similar pledges after closure of the jute mills, citing it would take only around three months to reopen the mills.

In April 2021, the government decided to lease the mills to the private sector for periods ranging from 5 to 30 years. However, the process is getting delayed.

"Two mills are already in production, while commissioning process is underway for six more. Legal complications temporarily stalled the process for one other mill," said Golam Rabbani, regional coordinator (Khulna) of BJMC.

Fortune Group took the lead by initiating limited-scale production at Daulatpur Jute Mill on December 3, 2023 through a leasing agreement, while Akiz Group began experimental production at Jashore Jute Industries Ltd.

Ishaq Ali, general manager of Fortune Group, said the mill would be fully operational soon, adding that plans including hiring more workers and construction of a shoe factory are underway.

"Stocked jute products are set to hit the market, aiming to turn past losses into profits," he also said.

According to mill authority, only 10-15 looms out of total 250 are currently running at Daulatpur mill, while about 150 workers have been recruited so far. At JJI mill, 300 workers have been engaged in experimental production while 466 looms have been commissioned for it.

Nur Ahmed, a former worker of Daulatpur mills said, only 105 out of the original 30,000 workers have found jobs so far.

"We urge the government to resume operations at all mills and ensure job security and equal pay structures for the workers," he added.