A helpless family in Jugirhat village in Gazipur's Sreepur upazila spends their days in miserable conditions as six members of the family are physically challenged.
The suffering of the family began with Suruj Ali, 62, following a minor incident.
One day, when he was just several months old and was in his mother's arms, his mother slipped. The baby Suruj Ali fell down from his mother's lap. On the night of the incident, he suffered from a high fever.
After suffering for a few days, the mobility of the left leg was lost. Gradually his both legs became disabled.
He has one son and two daughters. They are also physically handicapped from birth. Even his two grandchildren were not born healthy.
They believe that the curse of disability in the family started from the fall of Suruj Ali's mother Romela Khatun.
The 81-year-old Romela Khatun said: "I was going for a visit with my son a few days after his birth. On the way, he fell down from my lap. At night, my baby boy developed a fever. After that, both his legs became useless. There was no improvement even after treatment.”
“My other siblings are fine. I am the only victim of such a situation. Now, we need to depend on the support of other people for the livelihood of our family,” Suruj said.
Among them, four disabled members get Tk10,000 in allowance after every 90 days which is not enough for their survival.
Suruj Ali's son Selim Ali, 35, is also physically challenged.
He said: “There are six disabled people in our family. If you can eat one meal, you won't eat another meal. That's how we are passing our lives.”
Salim's sister Parveen, 30, said she is also passing days with hardship due to leg problems. She got married after passing primary school. “Everything is fine, only the legs are immobile.”
Suruj Ali's younger daughter Jasmine, 24, is also physically handicapped.
In her words: "It is difficult to eat two meals if we get one meal. I receive an allowance of Tk2,500 with a gap of three months and I got it twice so far.”
Neighbour Jasim Uddin said: “They cannot walk. The elderly head of the family is also disabled. The boys and girls have grown up facing difficulties. Now they are passing their lives with suffering.”
In this regard, a member of the local Kauraid union parishad, Moinul Quader, said: "This year, the council arranged for their disability allowance. Earlier they used to get an allowance on 'Subharna' card. However, that allowance is very low.”
Sreepur Upazila Social Service Officer Manjurul Islam said: "They are being given disability allowance through the Social Services Directorate. More facilities will be provided if it is required.”
