Woman becomes self-reliant by producing vermicompost

Tania Parvin, a resident of Shovarampur village in Sadar upazila of Faridpur district, has become self-reliant by producing vermicompost (organic fertiliser) commercially.

She not only achieved financial solvency for herself but also empowered other women in her locality and promoted the use of organic ferilisers in farmlands.

Talking to The Business Post, Tania said she started producing vermicompost in 2017 in collaboration with the Department of Agricultural Extension. Initially, she installed three ring slabs with a capital of Tk 3,000 and used to earn Tk1,000 per month.

“Now, I earn Tk 60,000 to Tk 70,000 per month. After excluding the manufacturing costs, I make a profit of around Tk 30,000 to Tk 35,000,” said Tania.

The production area, located near her house premises, is a tin shed, one-storied building consisting of 26 cement made enclosures. Each house is 4 feet by 10 feet in size.

“We throw 40 maunds of vegetable scraps, cow dung and scrapped banana trees at each of these enclosures, release 10kgs of earthworms on that mixture and cover it with burlap sacks. After one month of decay, we get three to four tonnes of vermicompost,” she said while explaining her production process.

The farmers of the area said they used to apply different kinds of chemical fertilisers on their croplands. However, they now use vermicompost as it gives them better yield at a cheaper price.

“I used to buy a kilogramme of chemical fertiliser for Tk 50 before, but now I just have to spend Tk 15 to get Tania’s top-quality organic fertiliser,” said Ramjan, a farmer of the area.

Md. Golam Hafeez, general manager of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation, told The Business Post that Tania has become an example for the other women of the area.

“She has not only empowered herself but helped other women in the locality to be self-reliant as well,” he said.

“If Tania Parveen needs any help from us, we will surely be ready to assist her,” he added.