[🇧🇩] Eid Ul Fitr

[Saif]

Here's how Dhaka is gearing up for Eid celebrations

An overview of the city's festive preparations and excitement.

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Here's how Dhaka is gearing up for Eid celebrations
An overview of the city's festive preparations and excitement

Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. Photo: Prabir Das

Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated on Monday, and every home is now filled with boundless joy and festivity. To make Eid celebrations enjoyable, various parks, zoos, and museums in the capital are ready to welcome visitors.

Entertainment centres across Dhaka are being decorated in a new look. However, as in previous years, the Shishu Park in Shahbagh will remain closed, as it has been shut down since development and modernisation work began. Meanwhile, the National Museum, which remained closed during Eid since the Covid-19 period, will be open to visitors this time.

A visit to these entertainment centres reveals the extensive preparations underway.

Officials and staff members are busy making arrangements, enhancing the beauty of leisure spots. Rides are being repaired, cleaned, and repainted, while CCTV cameras are being activated to strengthen security. Special lighting arrangements are also being made, and authorities are hiring additional staff. During the Eid holidays, city dwellers flock to entertainment centres with their families, creating large crowds at these venues.

National Zoo

The National Zoo in Mirpur remains one of the biggest attractions for Dhaka residents during the Eid holidays. Every year, thousands gather here from the first day of Eid for several days.

Star file photo

According to Dr Mohammad Rafiqul Islam Talukdar, the director of the zoo, special preparations are underway to give it a fresh look for Eid. Efforts are being made to improve the environment and ensure visitor comfort.

Signboards with guidelines are being placed to inform visitors about dos and don'ts inside the zoo.

National Museum and Ahsan Manzil

The photo is taken from Wikimedia Commons.

The National Museum and Ahsan Manzil will remain open for city dwellers on Eid day. These sites will be accessible from noon to 4:00pm for visitors of all ages without any entry fee, aimed at underprivileged and specially-abled children.

However, from the following day, a regular entry fee will be applicable. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the National Museum and Ahsan Manzil remained closed during Eid, but they are reopening following a request from the Ministry of Religious Affairs. These places are great destinations for those seeking a historical escape from the busy city life.

Gulistan Shaheed Matiur Park

Gulistan's Shaheed Matiur Park has been decorated with lights, new rides, and aesthetic enhancements. Additional rides have been installed to delight children. The best part is that the entry fee is only 10 taka, making it affordable for all, allowing children from lower and middle-income families in Dhaka South to enjoy the Eid celebrations at a minimal cost. Alongside the new decorations, security measures have also been strengthened to ensure a safe environment for visitors.

DNCC Wonderland Park

Shyamoli's DNCC Wonderland Park has been revamped to offer a delightful experience for children.

Amidst the city's busy life, this park provides an excellent entertainment option for kids. For Eid, the park has been redesigned to make it even more attractive, with special lighting and ride renovations in progress. All rides are being repainted to create a joyful atmosphere. Given the park's high foot traffic during Eid, extra security measures have been taken to ensure safety.

Eid Procession

After the Eid prayers, the Eid Procession will begin from the old venue of the Dhaka International Trade Fair, organised by the Dhaka North City Corporation.

The procession will start at the fairground and move along Agargaon's main road, crossing Khamarbari intersection and ending in front of the South Plaza of the National Parliament.

A marching band will perform during the procession, while participants will carry placards with Eid greetings and awareness messages. Five beautifully adorned horses will lead the procession, followed by 15 horse-drawn carriages.

Additionally, 10 puppet shows will depict stories from the Mughal and Sultanate periods. The event aims to spread the message of a fair and well-managed Dhaka city.

Two-Day Eid Fair

A two-day Eid Fair will be a major highlight of Dhaka North City's Eid festivities.

The fair will be held on Eid day and the following day at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre premises.

Over 200 stalls will feature products from various entrepreneurs and businesses.

The fair will be open from 10:00am to 5:00pm on both days, with Ferris wheels and different sports equipment for recreational activities to entertain children.​

 

[Saif]

Chief adviser greets countrymen on Eid-ul-Fitr

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has greeted the countrymen on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.

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Chief adviser greets countrymen on Eid-ul-Fitr

Photo: PID

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has greeted the countrymen on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.

"I wish everyone a joyful Eid Mubarak. During Eid, may you travel to your homes peacefully and joyfully with your family," the chief adviser said in a video message shared by his press wing today.

He also urged the people of the country to visit the graves of their relatives, look after poor families and think about how to improve their future.

"Introduce your children to them -- this is my wish," Prof Yunus said.

Besides, he urged all to remain united and firm in the face of provocations by the defeated forces, despite any difference of opinion during Eid prayers.

"May everyone's life be meaningful and filled with joy. May Allah help us all," Prof Yunus wished.​

 

[Saif]

Tarique extends Eid greetings to countrymen

BNP acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has extended greetings to the people of Bangladesh and the Muslim Ummah on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.

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Tarique extends Eid greetings to countrymen

Tarique Rahman

BNP acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has extended greetings to the people of Bangladesh and the Muslim Ummah on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.

In a statement issued on the party's letterhead today, he said, "On the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr, I extend my heartfelt greetings, congratulations and Eid Mubarak to the people of Bangladesh and the entire Muslim Ummah around the world."

The BNP leader prayed to Allah for the happiness, peace, progress and prosperity of Bangladesh and the Muslim Ummah worldwide.

He said this Eid carries a new level of excitement and enthusiasm following the fall of fascism through a mass uprising.

"But, during such a time of pure joy and celebration, many mothers find no happiness in their hearts, while many families do not feel the joy of the festival. This is because, due to the prolonged fascist rule of over one and a half decades, millions of families have been pushed into an era of darkness as they lost their loved ones to enforced disappearances, killings, abductions, and torture, and were enveloped in the darkness of ignorance and barbarism," Tarique said.

The BNP leader lamented that the families of the martyrs and the injured from the anti-fascist mass uprising do not experience the boundless joy of Eid celebrations.

"Even on Eid day, there may be tears in the eyes of mothers who have lost their children. In this joyful time, there is the silent cry of losing loved ones in the hearts of many families."

The BNP leader also demanded the trial of the deposed Awami autocrats who destroyed the joy of people's Eid celebrations.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir also extended Eid greetings and congratulations to the nation.​

 

[Saif]

No Eid festivities for 2,500 tea workers in Sylhet

More than 2,500 workers from several tea gardens owned by Burjan Tea Company -- including Burjan, Charagang, and Kalagul -- are facing severe financial hardship, without being paid their wages and rations for past three months. Their Eid bonuses were also not disbursed.

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No Eid festivities for 2,500 tea workers in Sylhet
Wages, rations and bonuses unpaid for three months

Photo: Mintu Deshwara/ STAR

Nazma Akhter, a widow who works at Kalagul Tea Garden in Sylhet, has been struggling to make ends meet for her family of six as she has not been paid for the past three months.

The family's sole breadwinner, Nazma has been forced to take loans and purchase essentials on credit. However, with the debt piling up and the shopkeepers no longer willing to extend her credit, she now finds herself in dire straits.

"I have not been paid for three months and also didn't receive an Eid bonus. I couldn't buy new clothes for my children. We are robbed of our smiles on this day," Nazma said.

Abdul Qadir, another worker at the tea garden, echoed her.

At least 70 Muslim tea workers' families and around 400 Hindu workers' families in the garden have been enduring misery without receiving their wages or rations for three months. Eid bonuses were also not disbursed.

As a result, many families have been pushed to the brink, with no clear solution in sight.

"It is a daily struggle to ensure two handfuls of rice for all eight members of my family," said Fatema Begum, 45, a worker at Kalagul Tea Garden and the sole wage-earner in the family.

"While children from neighbouring tea gardens are enjoying the Eid festivities, mine are at home, disheartened, while I am still wondering how to feed them for the day," she added.

Raju Goala, organising secretary of the Bangladesh Tea Workers' Union, said that over 2,500 workers from several tea gardens owned by Burjan Tea Company -- including Burjan, Charagang, and Kalagul -- are facing severe financial hardship.

"The workers are struggling to get food for their families. Burjan Tea Company owes them more than three months of unpaid salaries, rations, and Eid bonuses. While the workers are protesting, the company's general manager is nowhere to be found," he added.

So far, the company's response has been less than reassuring. They have repeatedly stated that the wages would be paid soon, but months have passed, and the workers are still waiting to be paid," Goala said.

Sohag Chhatri, a tea workers' leader, said, "The company used to pay us weekly, but for the past 15 consecutive weeks, there has been no payment or rations. The company's hospital has no medicine, and we still haven't received our festival bonuses for this year or last."

The workers have written letters to the deputy commissioner of Sylhet and the Divisional Labour Office, urging the authorities to intervene and ensure that the company pays their dues, but no action has been taken yet.

Sanjay Kanta Das, adviser to the Bangladesh Tea Workers' Federation, called on the government to intervene and address the issue immediately, warning that the workers would have no choice but to take to the streets if the matter is not resolved soon.

When contacted, Md Kamruzzaman, manager of Burjan Tea Garden Company, said the company had applied for a bank loan to pay the overdue wages and rations.

"The tea garden has been operating at a loss and now relies on loans from the bank to continue operating. Once we receive the loan, the arrears will be settled," he added.Mohammad Sher Mahbub Murad, deputy commissioner of Sylhet, said they have reached out to the company over the issue and hope that the company will pay the workers promptly once the loan is approved.​