Plight of people taking loans from NGOs

According to the media, a 36-year-old woman has recently committed suicide in Manikganj's Saturia reportedly after failing to repay loans that she had taken from NGOs (non-government organisations). One of the NGOs' officials allegedly harassed her just one day before she took her life. She was even threatened to be arrested. This is not a new incident. Every year, many people commit or attempt suicide after being verbally abused by representatives of NGOs for failing to pay instalments on their loan. Actually, paying instalments against loan taken from banks or microcredit-based NGOs may turn into a huge burden for an impoverished individual. First, they borrow from an NGO. Then, they fail to repay the money. And they take loan from another NGO to repay the first one's money but fail everywhere. In this way, they become helpless and decide to take their own life.

Taking loan from NGOs can lead to mental stress that can result in various types of complicated diseases. The poor in our rural areas even cannot bear the medical expenses. And so, those diseases can lead to deaths, which are not labelled as suicides. It is time NGO officials behaved with more sympathy towards those who fail to repay instalments in time. An extensive training is needed for the NGO workers to be humane towards small borrowers. Most importantly, there should be awareness in society so that people are not tempted to take loans from NGOs.

MA Islam

Dhanmondi, Dhaka

asheqbd@gmail.com