Photo: Wikipedia

DHAKA, Jan 14, 2025 (BSS)- Cattle and duck farming in haor areas is growing to be a lucrative profession for poor women as such farming brought fortune for many of them.
 
Like others Shahara Khatun a housewife of Austagram upazila of Kishoreganj district became self reliant from cattle farming.

She is now self-reliant from the earnings of two little cattle farms which inspired other women struggling to become self-dependent.
 
The story of Sharaha Khatun is different from other women in her area. She married to Nasir Mia, a local farmer, in 1998. After one year of marriage, Shahara started a duck and hen farm at her house.
 
Within just 2-3 years, she earned a lot of money by selling eggs of ducks and hens. As her husband was a well-to-do farmer, Shahara would not have to contribute in family expenditure, allowing her to make a sufficient deposit in a very short time. However, her ducks and hens farm was the main source of nutrition of her family.
 
In 2008, Shahara bought four cows and started her new journey of cattle fattening. Her husband Nasir Mia helped and inspired her a lot. At present, the farmerette has seven cows. During every Eid-ul-Adha she used to sell out some cattle and buy new ones at a low price. In this way, Shahara has so far earned around Taka 14 lakh.
 
Last year, she bought one acre of crop land costing Taka 8 lakh. Besides, she is helping her four sons in their study by providing money every month. Shahara's elder son Jibon Ahammad is studying law at a private university in Dhaka and her second son Joy Ahammad is a university admission seeker this year.
 
Describing her present condition, Shahara said, "I wanted to be a self-dependent person. After my marriage, I told my husband about my dream. He supported me and always helped me. My relentless efforts helped me becoming self reliant.”

“Though my husband is a successful farmer, I never sought any financial support from him. Instead, I helped my family in the study of my sons,” she said. 
  
“I think, I am a successful woman standing on her own foot in the haor area,” she said.

Monira Begum, a widow of the same village also became self-reliant from her cattle farming. She started her farm after her husband expired.
 
Mother of six children Monira became helpless after the death of her husband, who was a fisherman by profession. Now, she sells about 6-8 liter milk daily from four cows every day. One of her son Shah Ali helps her in the business from which she earns about Taka three lakh annually.

"I was in deep trouble after my husband's death. My two elder sons do not look after me and my younger son and daughters. One day I borrowed Taka 20 thousand from my younger brother and bought a cow cub and started to rear it. Now I have four cows and I wish the number of cows at my farm will increase in the future,” she said.

Social worker and women leader of Austagram upazila Syeda Nasima Akter said, many women like Shahara and Monira are becoming self-dependent in the haor area day by day in many ways. Cattle and duck farming are popular among them, she said hoping that more haor woman would found their fortune from the cattle and duck farming.