Khulna Bureau
A 150-foot muddy road in Keyakhali village of Dumuria, Khulna, neglected for 56 years, has finally been repaired with money saved by a woman for performing Umrah.
Habiba Khatun had saved the money by working on a sewing machine after getting married in 2008. But seeing the suffering of villagers, particularly during the rainy season, she decided to postpone her dream and handed over her entire savings to her husband, Hafez Md. Wahiduzzaman.
Using the money, Hafez Wahiduzzaman bought bricks and sand and, with the help of local residents, repaired the road. The work was completed on August 20.
Locals said the road would become knee-deep in mud and water during the rainy season, causing immense suffering to school and college students, elderly people, patients and worshippers. Despite repeated assurances from local public representatives, the road remained neglected.
Mohammad Omar Farooq said, “During elections, members and chairmen come, measure the road and promise to build it. But after the elections, no one comes to see it, even if people die here.”
He said sick people previously had to be carried on someone’s lap to the main road before being taken by car. “Even when going to pray, people had to wade through knee-deep mud to reach the mosque,” he said.
Another resident, Mohammad Shahidul Islam, said, “No relatives wanted to visit our house because of the mud. Even when taking a motorbike or van out, we had to wash it before taking it onto the paved road.”
Habiba Khatun said she had been saving half of her sewing income for Umrah while using the rest for family expenses. “But the road around our house was very bad. Especially during the rainy season, worshippers, including the Imam, faced great difficulty going to offer Fajr prayers,” she said.
“Considering the situation, I advised my husband to repair the road. Later, the road was built with the money saved for Umrah,” she added.
She said she was now saving money to perform Umrah again. “May Allah fulfil my wish—that is my hope,” she said.
Hafez Md. Wahiduzzaman said, “Serving people is also part of worship. Seeing the daily suffering of the villagers, I felt that this problem needed to be solved first. By the grace of Allah, I was able to complete the work with the money saved by my wife.”
Hafez Wahiduzzaman is also known for his social work. During the coronavirus pandemic, the ‘burial team’ formed under his leadership buried and cremated nearly two hundred people who died due to Corona across Khulna division.
The 150-foot road may not be a major development project, but the couple’s initiative to ease years of suffering has become an example of humanity in the area. #EK
