Thirty-seven participants including government officials, Union Parishad representatives and people from monga hit area attended the workshop.

The speakers identified crop loss due to flood, acute unemployment in October-November before harvest and erosion by river as the main reasons for monga.

They said 80 per cent of people of the area live below poverty level but no government made any effort to create jobs in the area.

Introduction of high yielding verity crops including vegetables, flood control, development of rural road network, soft term loan for farmers and supply of improved seeds can improve the situation to a great extent, they said. The government can easily attain these objectives, they said.

Presided over by UNO Shaghata Md Shaifulla Panna, the workshop was conducted by M Abdus Salam, Coordinator of Gana Unnayan Kandro (GUK), another local NGO.

SKS Coordinator Rasel Ahmed Liton told the workshop that Oxfam-GB extended financial assistance to one thousand families in remote char lands of the Brahmaputra basin in Gaibandha Sadar, Fulchari and Shaghata upazilas under a self-employment programme.

Other NGOs should also come forward with such programmes. The government should launch a coordinated effort to encourage such programmes. Such efforts will greatly ease the situation in a short time, he said.