280 beehives destroyed by dumping in pond : Beekeepers face loss of over Tk 20 lakh in Kalapara
Muh. Asaduzzaman Faruque, Kalaroa (Satkhira)
In Satkhira's Kalaroa, unidentified miscreants killed a large number of bees, including queen bees, by throwing 280 boxes of bees into a pond out of old enmity and violent motives. The affected beekeeper, Md. Jahangir Alam, suffered an estimated financial loss of Tk 2.07 million. A written complaint has been filed with Kalaroa Police Station demanding compensation and punishment for those involved in the incident.
According to the charge sheet and local sources, Md. Jahangir Alam (31), a beekeeper from Harinnagar village in Shyamnagar upazila, set up a temporary bee farm in Imamul Islam's mango orchard in Mirdanga village in Kalaroa upazila on September 9 for the purpose of collecting honey. He had installed 280 bee boxes there and was providing intensive care and guarding them.
On September 12, sometime between 1:00 PM and 6:00 AM, unknown assailants intentionally dumped 280 boxes of bees in the mango orchard into two nearby ponds. When the farm owner woke up in the morning, he found that all the bees, including the queen bee, had drowned in the pond water and the boxes were completely destroyed.
Affected beekeeper Jahangir Alam said in a tearful voice, "The market value of the bees in 280 boxes, each worth 6,500 taka, is about 1.82 million taka. In addition, about 2.5 million taka was spent on food and care in the last few days. They have ended all this for me through hostility. I am suddenly destitute and sitting on the street."
Upon hearing the news of the incident, local landowner Imamul Islam, witnesses Mohidul Islam and Imran Hossain, along with eager locals, rushed to the spot and expressed their anger. The locals demanded speedy justice for such heinous acts.
A written complaint has been submitted to the Kalaroa Police Station in this regard. The affected beekeepers and local residents have sought immediate police intervention to conduct a proper investigation into the incident and take legal action against the culprits.
