Name________________________________ Batch __________Roll ___________Bangladesh Studies/Final/Spring 2014/smj/21062014/Part A

Due on 22 June 2014Part A: Soft copy @ 9:00 am and hard copy @ 11:00 am Part B : 9:00 am to 10:30 am

Question # 1. Since independence, Bangladesh has progressed a lot in terms of food production, among other things. A country which failed to feed its 70 million people in the early 1970s, forty years later it is feeding 160 million, that too with reduced land resources. (Note: Cultivable land has reduced with the increase of population that requires more shelter, more infrastructure and more industry.)Despite such outstanding achievements in terms of food security (or food availability), the issue of food safety has increasingly become a major public health and consumer right concern. (Some often view this as a national security threat.) Like Bangladesh development paradox, this phenomenon (what maybe called unsafe food security) too is quite paradoxical. This forces us to ask ourselves the big question: so what? a question that we have tried to use as frequently as possible in this course to challenge ourselves. Now, answer the following questions by reflecting on the lessons that we have learnt in this course, the facts that we have come across, the approaches that we have deployed to explore knowledge, the skills that we have sharpened and the attitude that we have shaped:a) how do you assess this scenario/paradox?b) if youre in charge of solving this problem, what realistic action plan can you propose?

Answers:a) A paradox is a seemingly absurd or contradictory statement or proposition which when investigated may prove to be well founded or true.

Now, we have to focus on what are the paradoxes that are mentioned in this case.Back in the 1970s, although the population was small (70 million) and the amount of land was higher than it is today, food productivity was not enough to satisfy the entire population. But today the situation is completely the opposite. The population is more than twice (156 million) of that in 1970 and the amount of land is less. But in spite of that. Bangladesh now has food security.

This is a paradox. But, the reasons behind this paradox is quite obvious.First of all, comes technology. The advancement of technology has made this seemingly impossible event come into being. Because of advanced technology that is being used, food manufacturers have been able to produce food in an efficient manner which has led them to produce more in little amount of land available.

Also, another reason that can be identified is the proper fertilization and apt care of land in order to make them cultivable for longer periods of time and also, more fertile in the process.

Now, moving on to the next paradox, the Bangladesh Development Paradox which can be called the Unsafe Food Security. Here the term Unsafe Food Security is self-explanatory in explaining the paradox. Here, by saying unsafe before food security, the paradox is being created. Food security means that the quantity of food that is currently being produced is satisfactory.

But, in trying to address the food crisis of the country, the country has fallen into that age old problem which is not being able to maintain quality while producing a huge quantity. So, here we can see that the lack of quality of food is actually hampering the food security of Bangladesh. And so, the lack of quality is actually nullifying abundance of quantity. Now, what is meant by lack of quality of food? Basically, this means food adulteration. Food adulteration has become a huge problem for the people of Bangladesh right now. Basic food items on the market like rice, fish, fruits, vegetables, and sweetmeats are adulterated with hazardous chemicals in an indiscriminate manner, though food-grade preservatives and colors can be safely used in permissible quantities.More than 76 percent food items on the market were found adulterated in a random survey by Public Health Laboratory of Dhaka City Corporation in 2004. (Food Adulteration rings alarm bells, 2011)

So, to sum up, the current situation of the quantity of food production is satisfactory but the trade-off here is very high with the quality of food being compromised.