Pitha makers doing brisk business in Chandpur

CHANDPUR, Dec 14: 'Pitha' (cake) business has started in full swing in the district town and elsewhere in the country as biting winter has set in with chilly wind blowing in many places.
Women entrepreneurs have come forward to run cake business during winter.
They are making various tasty winter cakes and are selling them at low prices on the roadside on Government Mohila College Road in the district town, the FE correspondent has found during a visit.
"We have been continuing this business for seven weeks. The number of customers is increasing day by day," says one of the cake-makers.
They also provide homemade cakes to offices often on order, said Khadiza Begum, Nina Begum, Esha Begum and three other young housewives.
They are residents of Adalotpara, Rahmatpur Colony, Taltola and Haji Mohsin Road area in the town.
Every day, sitting roadside in a row, they start their business at 3.30pm and continue till the end of their stock around 8:00pm.
They have told the FE that they are satisfied with the profit. Many parents buy the cakes for their children's evening tiffin from here. Many women say, "It is a troublesome work to make cakes at home, so we are buying cakes every day."
The cakes include Pati shapta cake, Mukh Pakon cake, Jamai cake, Teeler cake, chicken chop, egg chops, shrimp chops etc, Momo, Noodles etc..
Khadija Begum, 30, has told the FE, "We should not spend time idly at home. We should rather utilise our spare time and do something fruitful to be self reliant financially by working hard. It enhances our prestige and power in the family."
"We spent enough time to get a good job, but our efforts have gone in vain.'' So, finally we have embarked on doing something good of our own accord to earn money and be self reliant instead of being an all time burden for money to husbands who often take us to task for sitting idle at home.''
A survey shows, "About 50 men and women are engaged in this winter cake business in the town."
A few underprivileged women, who are homeless and helpless due to the Meghna riverbank erosion, have started to make cakes and are selling them to cake-lovers.
Just for survival, they have chosenthis work, said a landless and homeless housewife, Nazma Begum, 30, mother of three schoolchildren. She has told the FE that she has been continuing this business for the last four years in the town's Chowdhury Ghat area where she is known to almost all day - labourers and wage earners.
Nazma makes 'chitoi' and 'vapa' cakes and sells each cake at Tk 10.
Monowara Begum, 60, a victim of the Meghna riverbank erosion who lives at Coila Ghat on the riverbank, sells 'chitoi and vapa' cakes beside Chandpur lake.
Her husband is too old to work. Her only son does not look after them after his marriage. So, she is running this small business. She is happy with this business and small amount of profit.

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