In Chakaria, 19 children are at risk of smoking near schools

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An eight-year-old child is sitting on a tobacco leaf in the pool area of ​​the Kakara Union of Chakaria along the banks of the Matamuhuri River. A pile of freshly cut tobacco leaves in front. He should be in the classroom at this time. But he does not go to school during the tobacco cutting season. While eating with his father, cutting leaves, tying them and taking them to the furnace – this was his daily work.

Talked to the child in the area recently. He says, ‘I don’t go to school while cutting tobacco. Cut tobacco leaves with father. The child’s father said that he had to take his son along because he could not afford to hire workers. You know there are health risks, but there is no alternative. Of course, not only this child, but also many children in the area have to support their families in this way during the tobacco season.

At least 19 government primary schools in Chakaria Upazila of Cox’s Bazar are growing and processing tobacco; Students are studying in that environment. That is, there are tobacco fields around these schools, and numerous tobacco kilns around. As a result, every day children are breathing polluted air along with books. Due to this, their health risks are increasing.

Recently, the same picture was seen after visiting different schools of Sarezmin Kakara, Phansiakhali, Bamu Bilchari, Baraitli and Surajpur-Manikpur Union. Somewhere there are tobacco plantations around the walls of the classrooms, somewhere there is extensive cultivation on both sides of the entrance to the school.

Dr. Kakara Union. Gopal used to smoke before entering the government primary school. Tobacco plantations on both sides of the main road in front of Pukpukuria Government Primary School in Phansiakhali. Najma Yachmeen Government Primary School in Bamu Bilchari is engulfed in tobacco from almost three sides. Somewhere, it seems, children are taking lessons sitting in the middle of tobacco fields.

Around these 19 schools, leaves are being dried in at least a hundred tobacco kilns. According to the upazila education officer, there are at least 110 furnaces around these schools alone. Dr. Acting head teacher of Gopal Government Primary School Amena Begum told Prothom Alo that when the tobacco leaves are ripe, their strong smell reaches the classroom. Again, many students join their families while cutting tobacco. This is disrupting their studies and increasing health risks.

To go to school, children have to pass the tobacconist. Barefoot or wearing sandals, they trample over pesticide-strewn land. Touching tobacco leaves, and in many cases working to eat with the family—all of them are directly exposed to toxic substances from childhood.

On the morning of April 22, at North Kakara Government Primary School, two tobacco kilns were found about 50 yards away from the school. Page is being processed. The pungent smell coming out of the furnace is floating in the air and reaching the school premises directly. The teachers and students could feel that smell inside the classroom as well. Teachers said, this is not a one-day event; This smell comes out at regular intervals during tobacco processing.

According to doctors, the effects of these exposures are not immediately noticeable but cause gradual damage inside the body. Chakaria Upazila Health Officer Mohammad Zainul Abedin said that the nicotine in tobacco leaves can enter the body through the skin. This condition is called ‘Green Tobacco Sickness’. It can cause vomiting, dizziness and weakness.

He also said that pesticides used in tobacco cultivation are very harmful to the nervous system and respiratory system of children. Exposure to these chemicals at a young age has the potential to impair physical development in the long term.

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The effects of tobacco cultivation are not limited to the human body. This is affecting the environment and agriculture as well. Chemical fertilizers and pesticides used in tobacco cultivation in Matamuhuri riverine areas are getting into rivers and water bodies through rainwater and irrigation. Local residents complain that it is affecting aquatic life.

Tobacco cultivation is also affecting the adjacent land. Ali Ahmad, a farmer of Surajpur Char, said that the yield of his almond land next to the tobacco field has decreased significantly. Earlier, about 250 grams of nuts were available per tree, but now it has come down to around 100 grams.

Upazila Agriculture Officer Shahnaz Ferdausi said that chemicals are used in relatively large quantities in tobacco cultivation, which destroys the organic structure of the soil. If this cultivation continues for a long time, the fertility of the land decreases and the production of food grains is hindered.

According to local farmers, the risk is high and the market is uncertain for crops like paddy or vegetables. In contrast, in tobacco cultivation, companies provide upfront money, seeds and inputs, resulting in guaranteed income to farmers.

Mohammad Nurul Huda, a farmer in Kakara area, said, “Tobacco farming is sure to make a profit.” There is uncertainty as to whether the costs will rise in other crops. So many are forced to turn to tobacco.

Environmental activists claim that there is no effective supervision to stop tobacco cultivation and setting up of furnaces around educational institutions. Although there is an assurance of initiative from the administration, its reflection is not seen in reality.

Although there is a law to control tobacco around the educational institutions, parents are raising the question that how can smoking persist within the walls of the school? Some parents, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the health risks to children and damage to the environment; These are not unknown to anyone. Yet there is no effective action.

However, Bangladesh Environment Movement (Bapa) general secretary of Cox’s Bazar, Karim Ullah, thinks that tobacco cultivation should be stopped immediately near the school. He said that more than a thousand acres of land is being cultivated in Chakaria, a large part of which is spread around the educational institution. As a result, what is supposed to be a safe learning environment for children becomes a center of risk.

When asked, Upazila Education Officer Mohiuddin Mohammad Alamgir said that the matter has come to their attention. Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Shaheen Delwar also said to take action.