Jahirul Islam, 47, a farmer and longtime Saudi expatriate from Kharara village in Bahalbariya union, Mirpur upazila, Kushtia, has found success growing Tiya-variety bitter gourd after returning home.
A wave of agricultural innovation has swept through Mirpur upazila in recent years, with local farmers turning to high-value vegetables and both local and foreign fruit varieties. A key figure behind this shift is sub-assistant agriculture officer Md. Mainul Islam Rajib, who has trained new entrepreneurs through a three-day program under the Sustainable Agriculture Extension Project for the Jessore region.
Islam, who spent 22 years in Saudi Arabia, took training from the upazila agriculture office and started growing bitter gourd on his own initiative. He planted Tiya-variety bitter gourd on 15 katha of land, spending approximately 60,000 taka on land preparation, fertilizer, trellis construction, pesticide, and maintenance.
He began harvesting within 30 to 35 days. He now sells approximately 50 kilograms of bitter gourd daily, earning around 3,000 taka per day. He has already sold about 12,000 taka worth of produce at local wholesale and retail markets and has begun turning a profit.
Local young entrepreneur Md. Sourav of Sourav Agro Science said Islam’s success demonstrates that nothing is impossible with effort and hard work.
Sub-assistant agriculture officer Rajib said enterprising farmers like Islam are taking the area’s agriculture to new heights. “The soil and climate of this area are well-suited for bitter gourd cultivation. Islam has successfully capitalized on that opportunity,” he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report