Thousands still starving in Thanchi

This is the second editorial that we have to write in a space of less than two weeks on the food crisis in Thanchi. It does not seem that anyone in the government is too concerned about what is happening there. Admittedly, it is one of the remotest parts of the country and the upazila in Bandarban has a difficult communication system. But that can never explain the month-long near-starvation of the several thousand locals or the failure of the administration to rush adequate relief. More appalling is the fact that most of whatever relief has been sent to them is awaiting distribution for one reason or the other. And there is reportedly lack of transparency in distribution of relief. 

We understand that a similar scenario visits the area every year as the region is dogged by rodent attacks and the absence of any proper warehouse only compounds the problem. The situation is particularly bad this year as cultivation suffered because of heavy rains.  

However, food relief is a temporary palliative. The crisis demands a permanent solution. We urge the government, as we have done before, to build up buffer stocks in the remote areas of the Chittagong Hill Tracts to meet exigencies. The food situation has to be monitored on a regular basis to make sure that such a crisis does not recur. The government officials, especially the upazila agricultural officers, need to visit the area on a regular basis to render advice and to take stock of the availability of food to these communities.