Dream of a farmer with disability revolves around colourful plums


OUR CORRESPONDENT, KHULNA | Published: January 19, 2021 14:59:49


A hearing-impaired farmer, Hossain Sardar posing at his plum garden in Khulna’s Dumuria — FE Photo

Hossain Sardar is a hearing-impaired farmer. He has cultivated eye-catching colourful plums in Khulna’s Dumuria. Each of his plum trees bears two to four maunds of fruits, which he is now wholesaling at Tk 140 per kg.

If one looks at the plum trees of Hossain Sardar from a distance, it seems to be a fair of red and green. At first glance it is not clear whether the fruits are red or dark green

But when close to the garden, one can really see what it is.

All his 90 plum trees have yielded so many fruits that the branches have bent.

Hossain Sardar, from Arshangar of Dumuria upazila (sub-district) has cultivated various varieties of plums, including apple kul, kashmiri kul and satkhira coconut kul, on three bighas of his land.

The price of apple kul has been increasing day by day in the market for its attractive colour and taste. Wholesalers buy it at Tk 140 per kg.

The farmer hopes to sell his plums worth Tk 600,000-700,000 this year.

It’s the agriculture that has brought Hossain Sardar, who has barely a primary level education, land, house and honour.

Many people come to see his garden and seek advice from him.

Hossain Sardar said he did not expect much yield this year as the plum trees, collected from Godaipur in Paikgachha, are only two years old.

Dumuria Agriculture Officer Mosaddek Hossain said they have supported Hossain Sardar with advice and other things. He may grow ginger as a companion crop in his plum garden in future.

Khulna District Department of Agricultural Extension District Deputy Director Hafizur Rahman said Hossain Sardar is a good farmer. He has been successful in kul farming using his own technology.

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