Iqbal Hossain, a young man from Cumilla, has succeeded in farming fish in tanks in his yard after learning the method on YouTube. Having started as a hobby, he now meets his own family's needs and also supplies neighbouring families.

Built with little capital through his own effort, the set-up is looked after by members of his family. Besides pangas, tilapia and shing, other fish are also raised in the tanks. Iqbal Hossain says anyone using the method can meet the family's fish needs and sell some too.

Iqbal Hossain, a printing press businessman, lives in Shuvonagar village on the border of Cumilla Sadar Dakshin upazila. He watched the low-cost method of farming fish in tanks in a yard on YouTube, took a liking to fish farming and set about making it happen.

In January last year he began farming fish in three tanks measuring 7ft by 8ft in his yard. In all, it cost him Tk 1.2 lakh. He first tried several species but later found shing, tilapia and pangas suitable. His three tanks now hold several hundred fish. After meeting his family's needs, he sells to the houses around him.

Cumilla district fisheries officer Abdul Quddus Akhand said anyone can farm fish in tanks if water and oxygen are supplied. No chemicals are needed, so fish raised in tanks are environmentally friendly and healthy. Although not commercial, this low-cost method can meet a family's fish needs for the whole year, with some left to sell, so anyone in a village or town can take it up.

He added that to raise Bangladesh's position in fish production further, farming must increase. Encouraging tank fish farming would both help production and meet families' needs.

Source: Dhaka Tribune. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.