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Realizing Increased income through e-Krishok
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Md. Mojid Ali is successful farmer for the village of Char Jamalpur in the sub-district of Baira, Manikganj. At only 35 years of age, he already owns about 10 bighas of land, of which some he inherited from his father and some he added by himself. He lives on his homestead with his parents, wife, their son and his two younger brothers. Mojid says that he farms paddy, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, sugarcane, lady fingers, bottle gourd and a number of other seasonal vegetables. Besides farming, he also owns 2 cows, 4 goats and a number of ducks and chickens.
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Mojid says that the life of a farmer is constantly full of stress and tension. One day you have to worry about the rain, the next you have to worry if it will not rain. Then there is always the thought about pest attacks, disease etc. Before whenever Mojid faces any farming problems, he would consult with the local farmers who are considered to be experienced and knowledgeable with the local situation. At other times he would try to reach the local Sub-Assistant Agricultural Officer (SAAO), but it was always very difficult to get hold of the SAAO; and even when he was located, the officer’s information was not always correct. Because of this lack of outside support, Mojid feels that he is not able to earn as much as he has to potential to earn.
It was in this sort of situation that Mojid heard of e-Krishok in early 2009. He was told that he could visit the local Community Information Center called Batighar and get solutions for his agricultural related problems. He wondered to himself how a tele-center like Batighar could help a farmer like him with his problems. As it turned out he was able to find out for himself in the near future.
That cropping season, Mojid sowed cucumber on nearly 1 bigha of land. Things seemed to be going alright until he noticed that many of the cucumbers were shrinking and becoming weak. On top of that the cucumbers were attacked by pests which were destroying the crop. He needed to do something quickly or else he risked losing the entire field. As he was not able to get hold of the SAAO, he went to Batighar for help.
At Batighar he described his two problems to the manager of the center, Toslim. Toslim contacted the agricultural specialist of e-Krishok, who advised the use of pheromone trap for the pests and a medicine for the disease. When Mojid returned the next day, Toslim was able to provide the solutions to him. With the help of the solutions, Mojid was able to save nearly 70% of his cucumber crop. By selling the harvest, Mojid was able to earn Tk. 25,000.
He now realizes just how useful e-Krishok can be to farmers like him. Where he about to lose his entire crop because of disease and pests, he has earned Tk. 25,000 because of e-Krishok. He is now confident that in the future he will be able to rely on e-Krishok for more support to increase his income. He also urges other farmers like him to visit Batighar and use the e-Krishok service available there.
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