COVID-19, this pandemic is hitting extremely hard on some of the labor-based industries of Bangladesh. Like many others, tea workers are extremely affected by this pandemic. 

Tea workers are called the Poorest of the Poor as they are one of the lowest-paid workers in Bangladesh and earn around 2550 BDT($ 30,06) monthly. As far as the practice, they get their wages weekly. 

In the case of Kaliti Tea Garden situated in Kulaura union, Moulvibazar, around 1020 workers working there haven’t received their wages from the last 12 weeks. At this very moment, most of these thousand families are starving and suffering in hunger. There are already a few death cases due to a lack of proper attention. Not only that but also they have the least access to clean drinking water, treatment, medicine and other facilities a normal person should avail of. 

The Earth Society team has already initiated ‘Serve to Survive Project‘ to support the people in need and to address the case of Khaliti Tea Garden, we made collaboration with the Jagorone youth forum (জাগরণ যুব ফোরাম), led by Dhaka University graduate, Mohan Rabidas, who is also an activist from the soil of the Tea Garden. 

Our first milestone is to serve one-month free food for 1020 tea workers’ families (around 5611 people in total) at Kalichi Tea garden, Moulvibazar. 

The Earth Society believes in initiatives to solve specific issues in a measurable and sustainable manner. We are initiating projects that help people in need, especially focusing on specific areas. After the current success of our initiative ‘Crack Platoon Transport Service’– a free shuttle service for medical caregivers with more than 1500 registration, we are encouraged to address specific problems caused by this current pandemic and try to solve them step by step. 

While many of us are in a safe zone with a cup of tea in our hands, let’s come together to give these tea workers a chance to survive.

Let’s help them not to die in hunger, let’s fight the battle together.