From rags to riches

A partial view of Farid Miasa's (seen in the picture) duck farm at Rambhadra village in Sunderganj upazila. The photo was taken last week. PHOTO: STAR

His now earns around Tk 30,000 a month.

He made the fortune from an integrated duck and fishery project in a three bigha pond.

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With the income from the project, illiterate Farid Mia has also purchased ten bighas of land at Ramhadra village under Sunderganj upazila in about 13 years.

Traders from Rangpur, Lalmonirhat, Dinajpur, Bogra, Krukurigram and Joypurhat come to his Sonali Poultry and Hatchery Project along the Sunderganj-Bamondanga road to collect eggs and chicken.

Farid Mia had procured three ducks of Cambel and Ding Ding spices from Lalbagh Poulty Farm in Rangpur in 1990.

Within months they produced 75 chicken. He reared those carefully. He developed a simple method to incubate duck eggs by using paddy husk.

This opened the door to prosperity. He started selling duck chicken.

"Now I can not meet traders' demand for eggs and chicks", Farid Mia told this correspondent during a recent visit to his farm.

He gets not less than 800 eggs from about 2000 ducks in his farm.

Farid Mia supplies chicken for free among poor villagers and buys back the eggs. They are also benefited, he said.

"Farid Mia is a successful poultry farmer. His success will undoubtedly inspire others", said Shawkat Hossain, District Livestock Officer.

"I had no training, only experience helped me", he said.

Seeing Farid Mia's success, many of the villagers have started duck rearing at Rambhadra. Farid Mia is now well known in the area.