The Report - North 24 Parganas

28. DHIRENDRANATH SARDARNREGA is more beneficial to farmers who own land as opposed to landlesslabourersDhirendranath Sardar is 75 years old as per the age specified on the card. Hehas three daughters and three sons. The family lives in the same household alongwith him except his elder son’s family who are in Kolkata. One of his sons runs aboat for earnings and the younger son is employed by a company.Dhirendranath lives in his ancestral house and the property is next to a bheri.Owing to lesser earnings from the fish business from the bheri during down tides,Dhirendranath often has to find employment elsewhere as a daily wagelabourer. Recently he hurt himself while doing brick work and had to returnhome. The family could not bear the costs of his treatment.Dhirendranath’s father, during his years, was actively involved in politics.Although Dhirendranath himself has also been a member of a political party,different from his father, he has never had much inclination and hence therewere father-son clashes in the family which never got resolved. His father haddistributed land among some villagers on the patta basis that he could neverretrieve.All his life he has tried to provide education to his own children who are now allliterate.Dhirendranath barely owns about 10 kathas for himself. Work on pondexcavation has been done on the land by the panchayat. He has been able todo some fish rearing in the pond water but unfortunately, there is no one in thefamily who could take responsibility to sustain the business. “The water from thepond is used by my neighbours for bathing and washing purposes.”Part of the land has been used for plantation of vegetables and Dhirendranth’sson and daughter in laws have been able to grow spinach and tomatoes inorder to cater to within family needs for food and sustenance.It is hard for Dhirendranath to find employment. “For my old age, the thekadardoes-not give me a job.” For health related issues I could not work on the fishbusiness as well. “I have been to the panchayat but even there I had no luck ingetting the job card.” So it is hard for him to make any kind of savings. Besides,there is also a debt of about Rs. 2000. And this has to be quickly repaid withlabour work only, Dhirendranath feels.