Rokeya Begum is a resident of Bharatkhan Badanibar village of Baharchhara Union of Banskhali
Upazila under Chottogram District. Rokeya was married at a very young age to Khair Ahmed
Chowdhury, the son of a once- noble Chowdhury family. Around the house, they had a small twopitched tin hut with a small amount of land attached to the hut and lying uncultivated on the
seashore.It was also washed away by the cyclone and floods of 1991. The struggle of life begins. Her
husband had to run the family by working as a day laborer in other’s house and selling his labor in
order to feed everyone. They spent their days without eating a single meal. Gradually, as the number
of people in the family increases, the expenses of the family increase, and their scarcity continues
to increase.After the 1991 cyclone and floods, Gono Unnayan Prochesta (GUP) started integrated
development work with the promise to stand by the poor people of the affected areas in the next
phase of disaster management in the region. The work of helping them in every possible way started
by forming the Samities. On hearing this news, in 1994, Rokeya Begum became a member of the
Baharchhara Badanibor Bari Mohila Samity [Code-0123, Member Code-3982] and started saving 10
takas weekly as per the rules of the organization. There were 35 members of this Samity.
Within a few days, she took a loan of Tk.10,000 (Taka Ten Thousand). Taking the money and giving
it to her husband, Rokeya’s husband Khair Ahmed Chowdhury bought a van. With this he used to
pay back installments and run the family somehow. In the meantime, many years have passed
between taking the loan and paying it off. Now, Rokeya is an ideal member ,who has been attached
with GUP’s samity for so many years by regularly depositing savings, taking loans and paying loan
installments according to the rules of the organization. They have already had a couple of children.
Everyone is living happily together in this joint family of Rokeya Begum. As an old member of GUP’s
samity, considering her interest and experience, when asked what aspect of the organization she
likes the best, she said:
“Its financial management, polite behavior and strong good relations with the
staffs. By which I have established a golden family in the cherished dream of a
very poor day laborer like us, I wish to sleep in peace here”.
Rokeya Begum from Baharchhara Seashore will never forget GUP
