They live by 'looting' paddy from rat holes in fields

A youth collects sheaves of paddy stored by rats in a deep hole at a field at Mohendranagar village in Sadar upazila of Lalmonirhat. Ultra poor people of the area collect paddy from rat holes during every harvesting season . Photo: Star

A good number of ultra poor people move around paddy fields in search of rat holes during the harvesting period as the grains stored by the rodents become their prize possession.
“Rats take paddy from farmers' fields and store it in their holes as provision for future. Many poor people like me dig the holes to collect the paddy every harvesting period," said Mafizul Islam, 48, of Karnapur village in Lalmonirhat Sadar upazila.
"I get 10 to 25 kg of paddy from a rat hole and I can dig two to three holes daily. I have continued the work for the last 15 years,” he said.
Meher Ali of the same village said he can collect 20 to 30 maunds of paddy from the rat holes every harvesting season and it serves as a great support for his family in bad times.
"It is a kind of sin to loot deposit of rats from their holes but we do it due to poverty," said Ranjit Chandra Das, 42, at Mritinga Dola of Mohendranagar village in Lalmonirhat Sadar.
“Hearing scream of rats when we dig their holes we can understand their pain,” said Nurul Islam, engaged in the same act at Bhadai village of Aditmari upazila.
“Rats make holes about four to eight feet deep to store paddy. Often we have to search several fields to find a hole as the number of such holes has decreased during the last several years,” said Narayan Chandra Das of the same village.
Several farmers including Nazrul Islam, Abdul Khaleque, Mahir Chandra Barmon and Tazer Ali at Bongram village in Lalmonirhat Sadar said they never protest digging the rat holes in the field as rats are harmful for crops.
Yasim Ara Begum, a local NGO representative at Sindurna village in Hatibandha upazila, said, "I visited houses of several people who collect paddy from rat holes. The work may bring temporary relief to the poverty-stricken people but it can hardly bring any change in their fate."