Housewife Shahnaz Akter, 35, lives with her husband Abu Yusuf and their two sons, Oli Ullah and Aman Ullah, in Pelaid village of Barmi union in Sreepur upazila, Gazipur.

Her husband works as assistant superintendent at Pelaid Darussunnah Dakhil Madrasa next to the house, and both sons study and live at Tamirul Millat Madrasa in Tongi. Once her husband leaves for the madrasa, Shahnaz is alone in the house.

After the housework, loneliness always troubled her, and she kept thinking of ways to use her idle time. She planted local and foreign fruit trees in the yard and flowers to beautify the house, but still wanted to do something more.

She told her brother, Fakhrul Islam, what she wanted, and he advised her to raise Kadaknath chickens. Fakhrul then spent about Tk 7 to 8 lakh to set up 200 Kadaknath chicks and a shed in Pelaid village.

Success followed. Within a few months of starting, Shahnaz had repaid her brother and has now built assets worth several lakh taka. From those 200 chicks she now earns half a lakh taka a month.

In her yard she has set up a business called Unique Kadaknath Farm and Hatchery, where she works.

Shahnaz said the household was running well on her husband's income and she had no worries. "But rather than sit at home, I felt doing something would bring income and pass the time well, so I told my elder brother. As soon as he heard, he encouraged me to raise Kadaknath chickens."

He brought 200 Kadaknath chicks from India and spent about Tk 7 to 8 lakh building a chicken shed in the yard. With the income from the chickens she repaid her brother and has now made a profit of Tk 10 to 12 lakh. Her monthly income is Tk 50,000 to 60,000.

At first, neighbours mocked the Kadaknath chickens, she said. "Now they want to learn about raising Kadaknath chickens from me, and I help them with information and advice. I want them to become self-reliant like me."

When videos of chickens for sale are posted on Facebook, people come to her house from all over the country by private car and microbus, Shahnaz said. Others order chickens and eggs by mobile phone.

Eggs are sent by courier and chickens specially packed on buses running to different parts of the country, with payment made through bKash. Each Kadaknath egg sells for Tk 55 to 70. She no longer has to ask her husband for pocket money or household money.

She said there is great demand for broiler and layer chickens in the area, but those who raise them often see a profit on the first batch and a loss on the second. Kadaknath chickens have much stronger disease resistance, so the risk is low and little is spent on treatment and medicine, making costs much lower than for other chickens.

Upazila livestock officer Md Roknuzzaman Palash said the Kadaknath is a black Indian breed raised widely in Madhya Pradesh. Its meat is high in protein and low in fat and cholesterol, which is why it is in demand.

He said Shahnaz Begum is known as an icon in today's society, having shown great success with Kadaknath chickens as a woman. She took part in the last livestock fair and won second place, and the upazila livestock office is giving her advice and support.

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