Former ULFA rebel Dwipen Khataniar utilizes lockdown time fruitfully, makes bamboo products

A CORRESPONDENT

PATHSALA: When the whole country was placed under lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dwipen Khataniar, who was once a feared leader of the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), honed his skills as a bamboo artisan.

Khataniar, a resident of Pathsala under Bajali district of Assam, was busy making decorative bamboo products at his home during the lockdown.

He had joined the outfit in 1984 and surrendered from the ULFA way back in 1993. After coming to the mainstream, he started a small business to earn his bread and butter. Everything was going good until COVID struck.

As the lockdown was imposed, he incurred a loss in his business and he was forced to look for an alternative source of income. It was during this period when the idea of making bamboo products struck his mind and thus, the bamboo artisan was born!

From flower pots to idols of Lord Ganesha, the Indian tricolour to paintings of Mahatma Gandhi- Khataniar began to craft various products out of bamboo and soon he became a popular face in the area.

Today, he boasts of having a rich collection of art and craft in his gallery that also includes portraits of several prominent leaders like Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Dr Bhupen Hazarika, Kalaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

Speaking to this correspondent, Dwipen Khataniar said, "Northeast has huge reserves of bamboo and instead of plastic material, we should use bamboo products to stop pollution." "If we endeavour together, we can make Assam a very developed State by selling our products outside the State. We need to produce what people from other States need," he added.

Today, Khataniar is an inspiration for many. Instead of being heartbroken due to the loss of jobs owing to COVID-19, many youths today are following Khataniyar's footsteps and are utilizing their art and skill to the fullest. If as a rebel leader Khataniar was feared by the people, now as a bamboo artisan he is loved and adored by the same people.

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