Bidi workers march against finance minister

Workers and officers of two Bidi factories in Lalmonirhat Wednesday protested against the finance minister with brooms and sticks in hand. The protesters who marched on the Lalmonirhat-Burimari highway from Saptibari Upazila to the deputy commissioner's office also submitted a memorandum to the DC protesting the minister's recent comments about the industry. Finance Minister AMA Muhith has said several times over the last few weeks that the government wants the Bidi, cheap cigarettes made of unprocessed tobacco, to disappear. The workers gathered in front of the Akiz Bidi Factory in Saptibari in the morning. Azizar Rahman, head of the Lalmonirhat Bidi Sramik Shongram Parishad (workers’ association) and Jashim Uddin, assistant in-charge of Akiz local office, led the march. Workers of local Abul Bidi Factory also took part in the procession. Some 10,000 people are employed at the two factories, according to officials. The memorandum submitted to the DC reads that the local and multinational cigarette companies are engaged in a conspiracy to destroy this local industry that employs many people. “Hundreds of thousands of poor people, widows, abandoned wives and disabled are working to make Bidis. These multinational companies have been conspiring to destroy their livelihoods,” it adds. The demonstrators called on the government to classify Bidi making as a cottage industry in the upcoming budget instead of imposing more taxes. Azizar Rahman said that rural employment had been hit by the taxes imposed on the Bidi industry. “We are protesting against the taxes and the finance minister's comment,” he said. Akiz official Jashim said that he was taking part in the protest as a worker.