A young agricultural entrepreneur in Joypurhat who grows papaya in a remote village alongside a private-sector job has drawn wide attention, Desh Rupantor's Rezaul Karim Reza reports. Hedayet Hossain Shiplu's six-bigha orchard at Bagjana Kuripara in Panchbibi upazila is now heavy with fruit, has created local jobs and is encouraging other farmers, with advice from the district agriculture office.

Shiplu set up the orchard about eight months ago at a cost of Tk 7 lakh and began harvesting six months later. He planted about 1,800 trees of local and foreign varieties, of which 1,500-1,600 remain; a single papaya weighs up to 5 kg and each tree yields 40-60 kg. If each tree gives an average of 40 kg of ripe fruit a season at Tk 40-50 a kg, he expects sales of about Tk 25 lakh.

"I started the orchard on six bighas in December 2025 with 1,800 seedlings and have been selling papaya since June. There are several varieties here, including Shahi, hybrid and Nasi King," Shiplu said. He sells ripe papaya at Tk 40-60 a kg and expects to recover the Tk 7 lakh outlay this season and make a profit from the next.

His success is drawing visitors seeking advice: Zakir Islam of Koktara came to ask about planting papaya on idle land, and Moklesur Rahman of Bagjana said he would switch to papaya because grass, maize, rice and banana had done poorly on his land. Zahurul Islam of Kutahara said about 15 farm workers earn their living in the orchard, supporting households and children's schooling.

Shiplu took up the venture to do something outside the usual pattern and, despite early doubts around him, has made it work; a fruit that bears within six months is proving an alternative on northern land where rice and maize do not pay.

Source: Desh Rupantor — Reporting: Rezaul Karim Reza