As farmland shrinks nationwide, there is a push to farm upwards. Properly done, rooftop farming can meet most of a family's nutritional needs. In one novel example, Golam Rabbani of Chattogram built a large rooftop farm.
Sixteen years on the roof
After Golam Rabbani's death, his son Mahbub Rabbani took charge. Following his father, he has run a dairy farm for 16 years on the roof of a seven-storey house in the Dewanbazar sub-area, in the heart of Chattogram city.
The seven-storey building has no lift. Every morning, buyers of pure milk crowd here, some from far away, but most beneficiaries are neighbours in the building. The farm now has nine cattle, large and small.
All by hand
Everything, from removing dung to feeding and milking, is done by hand. Two workers do all the work, from caring for cows and calves onwards.
Neighbours had never seen such a dairy farm before and are delighted customers. It is not only a dairy but an integrated rooftop farm: alongside the dairy, various vegetables are also grown.
Source: Shykh Seraj, Chhad Krishi. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
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