Poultry farming has given a significant boost to the rural economy
with more than 2,500 big, medium and small sized poultry farms.
It also created job opportunities for hundreds of unemployed people in
Netrakona district.
Officials of the district livestock department said the different
state-run commercial banks including Bangladesh Krishi Bank are
providing loans under the present government’s “Poverty-Alleviation
Programme” to establish agro-based income generating projects
including poultry farms.
District livestock officer Dr Aftab Hussain told the BSS that the
field-level officials of the department have been extending all out
cooperation to the poultry farm owners while the veterinary doctors in
mobile teams are rendering medicare service to improve the health
conditions of the poultry birds side by side with checking different
infectious diseases.
During the present government, the live stock department has
undertaken many programmes including training on “setting up poultry,
duck and dairy farms and methods of rearing these” to encourage the
entrepreneurs of these farms.
Talking to the BSS correspondent, Shah Rafiur Rahman, owner of a big
poultry farm in Kailati area under Sader upazila said Taka 1,200 to
Taka 1,300 is needed yearly for rearing a hybrid chicken, which laid
300 to 325 eggs a year. “I can easily earn a substantial amount of
profit from my farm”, he said.
Rahman also said that he had received loan from Bangladesh Krishi Bank
to set up the poultry farm, which ultimately made him self- reliant
and improved his socio-economic condition.
It also enabled him to contribute to the economy creating employment
opportunities for the people in the area.
Khaleda Begum, a house wife and a small poultry farm owner of the
remote village Shampur under Mohanganj upazila of the district, said
Taka 3 to taka 3.50 is needed for feeding a chicken every day.
She was inspired by other housewives in her area and also poultry farm
owners as well as filed-level officers of the livestock department to
set up a “poultry farm” in her private initiatives, which has already
started becoming a profitable venture.
(BSS, Netrakona)
