Liton Lost His Home to the Teesta's Erosion but Never Gave Up: The Lalmonirhat Student Working as a Mason's Helper to Study at Rajshahi University

Liton Mia lost his homestead to erosion by the Teesta river, but he did not give up his studies. To pay for his education in a poor household he worked sometimes as a day labourer and sometimes as a mason's helper, and earned a GPA-5 in both his SSC and HSC examinations. He is now a student at Rajshahi University. But the struggle has not ended; he still has to go out regularly looking for work to meet his study costs.

Liton's home is in Madhurampur village of Mogolhat Union in Lalmonirhat Sadar upazila. He is the eldest of three brothers. His middle brother Ripon Mia is studying higher secondary at a local college, and his youngest brother Golam Rabbi is a fifth-grade student. Their father Obaidul Haque drives an auto-rickshaw.

Liton, a second-year student in the Philosophy Department at Rajshahi University, lives in Sohrawardy Hall. His roommate is Imran Hossain, a student of the Marketing Department. In his first-year first-semester examination Liton placed second, and in the second semester he placed seventh. Although he is doing well in his studies, surviving amid the financial crisis is becoming hard for him.

Staying and eating at the hall costs about two thousand taka a month. Even sending that money is not easy for the family. So Liton looks for mason's work at least two days a week. On 9 November he went looking for work at a house under construction in the Dharampur area of Rajshahi city. The mason there, Shafiqul Islam, said it pained him to see a university boy come to work; as heavy concreting work was under way, he would call Liton if there was comparatively lighter work inside the campus.

Liton's father Obaidul Haque could not study beyond fifth grade. Thinking he would work in a garment factory, he went to Dhaka at a very young age, and later began driving a rickshaw. Since returning to the village in 2015 he has driven an auto-rickshaw. The family's biggest loss came in the river erosion of 2017.

Speaking by phone on 10 November, Obaidul Haque said: 'What I call my home is two enclosures fenced with tin. The three boys sleep in one, and my wife and I in the other. Even to keep a goat we have to keep it indoors. Right now there are a few goat kids; we sleep with them alongside. We get by with great hardship.'

Obaidul Haque has become burdened with debt to run the household and pay for his sons' education. After the erosion he mortgaged the remaining 15 decimals of land to his brother for two lakh taka. He also owes 76,000 taka to Grameen Bank and one lakh taka to three relatives. He has to pay two thousand taka in loan instalments every week.

Obaidul Haque said he earns 400 to 500 taka a day driving the auto-rickshaw, and out of that there is the cost of charging the battery. Because of illness he cannot drive regularly either. Yet he has not given up the dream of educating his three sons. In his words: 'I will educate all three of my boys.'

Liton said that at various points in his student life several teachers helped him — sometimes with notebooks and pens, sometimes with necessary study materials. He earned a GPA-5 from the science stream in his SSC. But thinking of the cost, he enrolled in the humanities stream at college.

To raise the admission money for Rangpur Carmichael College, Liton went to Dhaka and worked for about two months as a mason's helper. With those earnings he enrolled at the college and bought books, notebooks and clothes. Even while at college he worked as a construction labourer for about 10 days a month, spending the rest of the time on classes and study.

Even after winning a place at university, money worries did not leave him. Liton travelled about 20 kilometres from home to work and raised his admission costs. With part of his earnings he also repaid some of his father's debt.

While talking at a tea stall on campus, Liton's friend Sakib said Liton had crossed many obstacles to come this far and was still fighting; his friends are inspired by him. Another friend, Alal Adnan, said: 'He often says, "Friend, I don't feel good about anything. I can't bring myself to ask father for money. He is ill and hasn't taken the rickshaw out. Tell me, how do I ask?" Even so, I believe this poverty will not be able to hold Liton down.'

The philosophy student's dream is to finish his studies, take responsibility for his family and free his father from the burden of debt. For now, though, he has one worry — that his university studies might stop halfway for lack of money.