Boat makers at the weekly “Noukar Haat” (boat market) in Kuriana under the Swarupkathi upazila of Pirojpur district are doing brisk business during this monsoon season.
The two-kilometre-long marketplace is noted for the trade in different varieties of boats during the monsoon season. The market runs every Friday from May to November.
“Panis” or “Pinis”, “Dingi” and “Naak Golui” are the types of boats available for sale, built by local craftsmen from the Muktahar, Chami, Boldia, Inderhaat, Boitha Kata, Dubi and Kathali villages.
Waterways and boats are an integral part of the country’s southern transportation system, serving about 80% the population.
Traditional country boats made of wood are still popular in southern Bangladesh. They facilitate transportation and are means of livelihood for many of the region’s inhabitants.
Boat makers say they use timber from local trees like Koroi, Raintree, Jarul, Shal, Sundari and Mahogony to make the boats.
“We mainly use timbers form Raintree, Chambal and Sundari trees to build boats,” says Abdus Salam from Boitha Kata village.
The boats are useful for carrying crops and nursery items on shallow waters during monsoon. Abdus said the boat-building skills had been passed down from generation to generation.
Asked how many days it takes to build a boat, a boat carpenter Swapan Sadhu said it would be possible to build a boat within four days if working with a helper.
Some of the boat makers said they made between 20% and 25% profit from the sale of a boat at Tk1200-Tk4000.
Boat carpenter Yusuf Ali said the cost of the boats varied depending on design, size, finishing, coating, cost of labour and construction materials used.
One of the buyers, Harshit Mandal, said this market sold flat-bottomed boats suitable for rowing across shallow water.
Harshit said the boats were 13.5ft to 18ft in length and 3ft to 4ft in width, and could be operated easily by one or two boatmen to cover a short distance.
Anwar Mistri of Chami village said his boat could ply on shallow water for one or two seasons in good condition depending on the wood, coating resins, materials and maintenance.
At “Nouakar Haat” small “Pinis” boats are sold at Tk1500-Tk1700 and large ones at Tk2500-Tk4500. “Dingi” boats sell at Tk2500-Tk3000 and “Naak Golui” at Tk1500-Tk2000.
More than 500 families live off the boat-building business in the region, says Sarwar Hossain Chowdhury, Izaradar (leaser) of Noukar Haat.
“We take a 5%-10% commission on the sale of boats and on an average 60-100 boats are sold every Friday,” said Sarwar.