Faridpur's 'food minister'

Duty starts at 9:00am Every weekday, through scorching summer heat, drenching rain or bitter cold, Lal Mia, 55, from Munshi Bazar in Faridpur sets off with his rickshaw van. He reaches six villages across Koijuri union by habit; to return to Faridpur town by 10:30 a.m. Lal Mia has been delivering hot lunches to office-goers for eighteen years. What began as a simple job has transformed into a labour of love.

“My job is about responsibility more than money,” Lal Mia says. “My customers are like my children. I could not enjoy any job apart from this one. Delivering lunches is my passion.”

Lal Mia's customers, who call him the 'Food Minister,' a moniker he likes, are just as loyal. “He brings my food on time even in the roughest weather,” says Likhon Kumar Day, who does administrative work in the town's Chawkbazar. “Lal Mia is very reliable.”

“He has been carrying my food for a decade and he's very punctual,” says Alok Shorma, who works at a store in Niltoli in the town. “I can only eat homemade food because of him; without him my diet would be unhealthy. He's a very hardworking person.”

Jeweller Gowrango Kormokar who is also based in Niltoli is another satisfied customer. “I first asked him to bring food from my home because it wasn't possible to close the shop and go there for lunch. He's a good man; he calls us if ever he is ill to say that he won't be able to come.”

Lal Mia carries around 45 tiffin lunches per day. “I have good relations with their family members also, from whom I collect the food,” says Lal Mia, who lives with his wife, three daughters and a son.

Of an afternoon, with all tiffins delivered, Lal Mia's work is not done. He goes to the Sonali Bank corner area of the town to collect fresh water for his customers, before returning to each office to take the empty tiffin boxes. By evening he has retraced his journey through the villages delivering each tiffin box to its rightful home. Finally his duty is done, ready to be repeated again on the following day.