Bangladesh Bidi Sramik Federation has formed a human chain in the capital on Monday demanding to press home a Four-point charter of demand including withdrawal of 10 percent income tax on bidi in the budget.
Over one thousand bidi workers gathered in front of the National Board of Revenue and formed a human chain there at around 10:00am. Addressing the human chain, reduction of tariff on bidis in the forthcoming budget, withdrawal of 10 percent income tax on bidis, enactment of protection law for bidi workers and to protect bidi as a domestic industry.
After the human chain, the leaders of the bidi workers handed a memorandum to the Prime Minister through the chairman of National Board of Revenue.
The speakers said, Millions of workers including the helpless, disadvantaged, extremely poor, physically handicapped and widows make a living by working in the bidi sector.
But the country's ancient labor-intensive industry is being destroyed by the conspiracy of foreign multinational companies.
Multinational companies were smuggling thousands of crores of rupees abroad by burning the lungs of the people of this country. Some corrupt local officials are taking advantage of foreign multinational companies and imposing excessive taxes on bidis. Bidi owners are being forced to close their factories as they cannot bear the burden of this exorbitant tax, he said
As a result, the workers are living a dehumanized life. Besides, advance income tax on cigarettes is 3 percent and advance income tax on bidis is 10 percent. We want to repeal this discriminatory advance income tax.
The speakers also said, Some unscrupulous bureaucrats are conspiring to increase tariffs on bidis to give foreign cigarette companies a monopoly. Due to the increase in tariffs, unscrupulous traders are making fake bidis and marketing them to evade the tariff.
The government is being deprived of huge amount of revenue. It is even creating confusion in the minds of the people by hiding the real number of bidi workers to destroy the bidi industry and workers. We strongly condemn and protest against this, he said.
If there is a conspiracy against the bidi workers, we will be forced to go for a tough movement,' he added.
Bidi workers leaders MK Bangali, Abdur Rahman, Lokman Hakim, Nazim Uddin, Harik Hossain, Lutfor Rahman, Abdul Gafur, Shamim Islam and others spoke in the human chain.
