DHAKA, March 18, 2024 (BSS)- The night fell, a rural village woman found her house that excluded a warm and inviting aura. The sad eyes of a middle-aged poor woman of Sunamganj recalled a childhood memory that she had a desire to get her educated, make her self-employed and lead a decent life. But the curse of poverty had shattered her dream as she was married off at her teens. After a long struggle, forty-seven-year-old Jahanara Begum touched her fingertips to her face with loving sadness.
 
Jahanara had a keen desire to study. Even, she was admitted to a school. But, she didn’t continue her study after class five for poverty. She was married off at the age of 14 years. Her husband’s family was also poor. But she was stubborn. She wanted to give education to her children, though she couldn’t make it for herself. She made a nursery through hard works and now she is a successful entrepreneur. She was awarded nationally and was honoured with the ‘Joyeeta Award’.
 
Jahanar used to live at Chalbandh village under Bishwambharpur upazila of Sunamganj district. She has two children. Her house is situated on three acres of land and is replete with various types of trees including mango, jackfruit, blackberry, orange, litchi, papaya, guava, coconut, betel nut, custard apple and olive. Most of those are fruit trees. Currently, she also planted green Malta. Besides, she brought different types of saplings of mango including Haribhanga, Himsagar and Amrapali.
 
Jahanara said she had a family of 10-member including her brothers and sisters and they were leading a distressful life. Her husband has no land. He was a farmer. Later, they were blessed with two children. Once it came to her mind that she must do something for her family.
 
Their elder son Belal Hossain passed primary school in 2006. Money will be needed to run his education. But they have no enough money.
 
Later, Jahanara came to know that the women of her village formed a samity (association).
 
She also became a member of the samity and after few days she got a call for trainings from the upazila headquarters. She received a three-day training on nursery. For the first time in her life, she went to upazila sadar as she never went out of her village. She had some seeds of chili and papaya and started her works. Later, she took a loan of Taka 4000 and started working relentlessly.
 
On the first day, Jahanara’s husband Hasan took 50 saplings and sold those at the local village market. She paid her loan after six months. After that, she moved to different places and the income from the nursery increased. And now, people of her upazila come to buy saplings from the nursery. She along with her husband are now looking after their nursery.
 
Currently, there are about 60,000 saplings in the nursery and they produce about about three lakh saplings every year.
 
Jahanara said she started fish farming in 2009 at two ponds.
 
She got an award as a successful woman entrepreneur in the district in 2010.