Shahjahan Ali, 65, has just come to the Railway Colony grounds in Shahjahanpur to sell about 2 kilograms of rice he collected by begging all day long. About 30-40 destitute people have also gathered at the 'market of beggars.'

Beggars sell rice at the Shahjahanpur Railway Colony Centre. PHOTO: Syed Zakir Hossain

The only thing sold in this market is rice. The price is cheaper by Tk 2 to Tk 4 per kilogram. Slum-dwellers buy this 'mixed' rice from the beggars.

"All the sellers of this market are beggars who beg in the areas like Bashabo, Malibagh, Khilgaon, Tikatuli, Shahjahanpur and Rampura," Shahjahan said. "We come here every afternoon to sell the rice we get while begging door to door."

The beggars usually started gathering at the market after 3:00pm. The buying and selling continue for 2-3 hours. "The market has been here for as many as 30 years. Sometimes I buy rice from here," said Sabur Ali, a barber.

Each of the beggars brings 3 to 4 kilograms of mixed rice which is sold here for Tk 15 to Tk 18 per kg, Sabur Ali said. "This is cheaper."

"Every day we collect several kilograms of rice and it is not easy to send the rice to our village home. So we sell the rice and send the money home," said a beggar.

The selling process is quite different in this market. Rice is sold here without any weighing instruments. A special-sized pot is used for measurement and four pots are supposed to make one kilogram of rice.

Ninety-year-old Nur Alam, a beggar, usually negotiates between the buyer and the seller if any problem arises.

"We don't need to give toll to extortionists or to the government," said a beggar. "Our only problem is the rainy season when market doesn't take place. During that time we can not sell the rice and purchase other essential commodities."

Most of the beggars come from Sherpur, Gaibandha, Jamalpur, Mymensingh, Rangpur, Dinajpur and other districts in the northern region.

"I have one bigha of cultivable land near Indian border in Sherpur. As I cannot utilise the land, I have been begging here for three years," said 55-year-old Rasul Miah.

Not only the slum-dwellers, some lower-middle class people, especially women, also buy rice from the beggars. "As the rate is cheaper, I buy rice from this market," said Salma Akhtar, a housewife of Shahjahanpur.

"I have been buying rice from here for the last 5 years. I don't need to go to other rice market," said Rashida Begum, a garment worker of Khilgaon.