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Iftar Blues

Rehan Azad

The mobile courts in Dhaka have been in full swing for some time now. Elite food shops like Helvetia, Shaad, La Bamba have been under fire for preparing food in unhygienic conditions. Not only fast food shops, big time restaurants have also been raided in the passed few months. Heavy fines have given the government much-needed revenue and the public a much-needed awareness. Factories have been raided too, and their deceptions have been clearly proved! The consequence: a slump in the varies prepared food business.

In spite of all this exposure, some shops and businesses still continue to produce adulterated food in very unhygienic conditions. Another dose of fines would be helpful, but we can’t expect the mobile food court to keep tabs on them forever, can we?

The month of Ramadan has arrived in the middle of all this upheveal, and one wonders whether it is right to buy iftar items from outside. While some sellers claim that their items are fully homemade (in hygienic conditions), newspapers keep publishing new adventures of the mobile food court! Used up oil is carefully preserved for constant use, while the cooks’ sweat add extra gourmet flavor to the food. It wouldn’t be an unusual sight if sales of iftar items fall this year.

Md. Alamgir Khan, a 40 yr-old resident of Dhanmondi, likes traditional iftar items, and has a craving for the halim sold in the streets stalls. But this year, he is caught in a dilemma: whether he should be buying it from those stalls or have it made at home. According to him, the halim at home is very much different from the one sold by the roadside stalls — especially since the one sold outside is spicier, and hence more delicious. But with all the recent news buzz created about food colorings and chemicals, it seems that this Ramadan he will have to make do with the homemade halim.

Another middle aged man, Ariful Haque, believes that iftar items sold by the roadside stalls will be prepared more carefully this time in order to convince people that food standards have improved since the mobile food court's inspections. "I will keep buying some of the spicy and delicious treats from outside as I am hopeful that there will be improvements. Not all food stalls use unhygienic methods to prepare iftar items. You just have to be selective while buying from the stalls.''

As inspections continue, more shops will get caught, while those with a clean record will make a name for themselves and continue to serve good and nutritious food. However, there is no doubt that iftar will definitely be a different affair this Ramadan.
(Author is a freelance writer and a regular contributor of Banglarights)

Photo: Mustafiz Mamun.