After finishing his studies, Sajib took a job at a local garment factory under pressure from his family's financial hardship. Within a short time he was promoted in several steps from ordinary garment worker to production officer, earning more than about Tk 30,000 a month. But he never liked earning money this way; he had a hidden wish to do something of his own. One day he had a dispute with a superior, quit the job out of determination and began farming fish in his family's pond.

The high price of fish feed on the market set him thinking, and the idea came to him of raising fish on natural feed. He took a loan from an NGO, built a shed over the pond and started raising chickens. With determination he built a small chicken farm. His success story began only a year and a half ago, with a small poultry farm at home.

Sajib, a young man from the Karnagop area of Rupganj in Narayanganj, first raised 700 chickens and made a profit of Tk 48,000 in a month and a half. The money from raising and selling chickens showed him a way to become self-reliant, and he pressed on with little capital and strong resolve. Saving more money this way, he built another shed to hold 1,000 chickens. Now the waste from the chicken farm feeds the fish, and his integrated farm earns him close to Tk 1 lakh a month.

His family is his parents and two siblings. His father has long been out of work through illness, and the hard-working Sajib has taken charge of the household. He has become financially self-reliant and is respected in the community. Chickens on the farm and fish in the pond: this integrated method has turned his life around, and he supplies demand in the local market.

Using only 20 decimals of ancestral land, Sajib has built the integrated farm. Chickens of various breeds are raised on a platform of bamboo and wood built over the pond, and rui, katla, mrigel and other species of fish are farmed in the pond below. This fish and chicken farming is his main source of income.

Sajib's success has become an inspiration for young and unemployed people in the area, and many are now taking an interest in fish and poultry farming after seeking his advice.

"From the start I did not like working for others," Sajib said. "I worked for a while only because of hardship at home. After working hard all day, I did not like the things that were said to me. When there was trouble at work, I quit out of determination and started farming fish in our pond at home. I saw that fish feed was very expensive. Suddenly it struck me that if fish feed could be provided naturally, costs would come down. With that aim I built a 1,000-chicken shed over the pond and raised 700 broilers."

"The very first time I made a profit of about Tk 48,000," he said. "Then I thought of expanding the business a little. I raised chickens this way for quite some time and gathered some capital. Later I built another chicken shed over the pond. Now I raise chickens in both sheds, and I do not have to buy any feed for the fish in the pond. With the integrated chicken and fish farm I am much better off than in a job. I earn nearly Tk 1 lakh every month."

Sajib's uncle, Babul Mia, said: "Although he took a job because of pressure at home, his heart was never in it. He has left working under others and now stands on his own feet. His venture is meeting demand for fish and chicken in the local market, and many people inspired by him are creating their own employment."

Rupganj upazila fisheries officer Alamgir Hossain told Jago News: "We will contact Sajib and give him all our office's services, including training in the proper methods of fish farming. If unemployed young people come forward like this, jobs will be created."

Upazila livestock officer Dr Sajal Kumar Das told Jago News: "Farms like this will make a big impact in creating employment for jobless youth. His farm will be brought under the necessary training and all the facilities of our office. Sajib's strong will and hard work have brought success. Instead of chasing jobs, unemployed people should come forward and create employment themselves, as Sajib has."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.