About 600 cooks and their assistants, who once cooked on different social functions and the offices of private and government organizations, are leading inhuman life since they have been left out of work for months due to coronavirus pandemic.
But the people were engaged in feeding the guests with rich food like polao (fried rice), biriyani, zarda, teharee, chicken, mutton, beef and some other lucrative items in bridal party, gaye halud, blessings of both bride and bridegroom, widely known as ashirbad, sunnate khatna etc.
Iqbal Hossain, 60, a renowned cook in the town, spoke to the Bangladesh Post at his office at Jheniadah Press Club market. None of his 32-member cooking team is leading normal life since they can’t make ends meet, he said.
They are suffering as local authorities barred them from cooking since late March in addition to no social and function being taking place for last seven months, he added.
The elderly man said usually the cooks and their assistants do not have other skills, putting them in a difficult position to earn through alternative way to lead their families.
Iqbal said the number of the cooks and associates is about 600 including 160 in Jhenidah Sadar upazila. They serve in the district with fame. Further, people from neighboring Chuadanga and Kushtia districts invited them to prepare foods for any programs due to their reputation in cooking.
At least 500 people were trained by him and serving at various hotels, restaurants, individuals in Jhenidah, Kushtia, Chuadanga, Jashore even in Dhaka. A good number of them were serving abroad like Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Kuwait with skill training on cooking, he said.
But the days are no longer when the global pandemic corona virus was grabbing the country which. No one of the cooks and associates had received any relief materials from the administration so far although they had submitted the list of 101 people in Jhenidah Sadar upazila.
The senior cook said finding no other alternative, most of the young people left the profession and working as day labourer, driving rickshaw and vans, porter or agriculture farm labourers for survival. Some elderly associates have been still staying with him hopping a better time.
He said he had received a number of medals and certificates with admiration from various persons or institutions for his good cooking which now comes in no effect when they were going hard for want of food in their houses.
The amiable cook does not see any remedy of the crisis at an early date.
