Amar Bari Amar Khamar project popularly known as Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar, one of the dream initiatives of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, appeared to be blessings for 4,70,556 distressed people changing their livelihood and living standard in 13 upazilas of Mymensingh district.
The project is now being run through Palli Sanchay Bank and the poorest people of the areas become self-dependent through bank loan assistance and necessary trainings. Even, many of them are becoming small entrepreneurs.
District (regional) senior officer of the project Md Humayun Kabir said Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar project is the first among the ten special initiatives of the premier and the activities of the project began in 2009.
A total of 10,053 samities were formed across the district thanks to the project while the number of its members is about 4,70,000, he added.
He said a total of Taka 1283.42 crore and 86,000 have been distributed among the members through Palli Sanchay Bank under the project.
In fact, the aim of the project is to make the distressed people self-dependent through providing loan assistance and necessary trainings, Kabir continued.
He informed that they are providing essential advices and directives to the members.
Selina, one of the beneficiaries of the project, was married off at her early age. Her husband Abdur Rashid was an x-ray operator at a local private clinic and he had low salary. It was really tough for Selina to run her family with the poor income of her husband.
But Selina continued her education though she was married off at her early age. At last she did her honours and started to search a job. But she didn’t get any job. She was determined that she will have to do something for her family.
Selina said she started the journey of changing her life along with seven poor and distressed women in 2007.
She bought a swing machine by her savings and took training from Jubo Unnoyan and started tailoring at her home along with seven more women, she added.
They began selling cloths in shops of different local markets and her income has increased gradually. Later, she opened a shop of handicraft named ‘Icche Ghuri’ in front of her residence in where she sold different types of handicrafts and cloths of children.
Once, she took a stall at Unnayan Mela on the premises of Muktagacha upazila parishad and she founded the stall of Palli Sanchay Bank just beside her shop. She got encouraged by knowing of different facilities and loan assistance and started a new journey through forming Ishwargram Nandi Bari Mohila Samity. In the beginning, there were only 43 members of the samity.
Selina invested Taka 10,000 through taking loan from the Palli Sanchay Bank. Later, she took Taka 50,000 after paying previous loan and started her business on a large scale. She sold the cloths at different shops and earned handsome money.
She also created employment opportunity for the members of the samity. The members started to get Taka 250 to Taka 300 everyday. Selina’s monthly income stands now at about Taka 50,000 to Taka 60,000.
She is now maintaining her family and she has a wish to open a garment factory.
Selina got Successful Self-employment Award and she received the award from the prime minister. Many women including Rani Biswas, Nurjahan and Surma Akther of the area got encouraged seeing the success of Selina.
Thanking to the officials of the project, Selina said they have played pivotal role in her success.
She also extended her gratitude to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for taking the special initiative.
Rahela is also another beneficiary of the project and she is a member of Amar Bari Amar Khamar of Muzati village in Muktagacha upazila of the district.
She didn’t carry out her education after passing SSC exams due to poverty. She has two kids and became frustrated as she had no income. Finally she bought a power tiller. But, it was not so easy to run a family with the income of only one source. Later, she bought a bull calf and also got another bull calf from her father.
Rahela said that he saw a regular programme on Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar on BTV and was inspired of witnessing different successful stories. She sold her two calves at Taka one lakh and bought two Phrygian breeds calves and she has now nine cows’ worth about Taka 27 lakh.
Of those, six are cows, two are calves and one is bull calf and she is getting about 60 liters of milk from three cows every day. She is earning about Taka 3000 every day through selling milk at different sweet shops and Armed Battalion Camp.
In the beginning, Rahela took Taka 10,000 loan from the Palli Sanchay Bank and later, she took Taka 20,000 and then, she took another Taka 50,000 loan from the bank. And now, she is planning to invest the loan at his farm in necessary moment. She is now known as a successful farmer in her area.
Junia Yesmin is another successful entrepreneur of Dhanuka village in Dulla union. She is also a member of Dhanuka Amar Bari Amar Khamar Samity. She became a successful self-dependent woman through farming cows.
Once, it was hard to run her family with only income of her husband who is a labour. But, she is now happy through farming cows by taking loan from the bank. She changed her life within ten years.
Yesmin said she knew the information of the samity from its president Dulal Uddin in 2011. Later, she got the membership of the samity and took trainings.
In the beginning, she got Taka 10,000 loan from the bank and bought a cow at TK 18000 with adding her own Taka 8,000. Later, she took another loan from the bank and bought cows. She has now four cows worth Taka 5 lakh.
She is also rearing ducks in a modern way at her house. Now, her kids are going to school. She is now a role model of successful women before the villagers.
Yesmin also extended her heartfelt thanks and gratitude to the premier.
Muktagacha upazila coordinator of the Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar Project Mahmudul Hasan said that they are giving utmost efforts as the special project of the government could be implemented in field level properly.
They are also providing necessary advices along with loan assistance to the distressed people of the area, he added.
He said the members of Muktagacha upazila samity is 11,811 and the savings is Taka 6.79 crore while the number of loan bearers is 7,788.
The cumulative investment is Taka 39.41 crore while the collection is Taka 26.9 crore, he added.
