Many young people are now interested in agriculture, engaging themselves in farming croplands and livestock, instead of in jobs.
Job cuts in the pandemic pushed a large number of people towards villages, and for a livelihood, young creative youths are choosing agriculture as an option for survival.
Rashed Ahmed, a private company salesman lost his job in March and went to his village in Tangail. Later, he found interest in vegetable cultivation and livestock farming. With a minimal amount of money, he started his journey to self-reliance.
He said, “I was frustrated after losing my job. Afterwards, I made up my mind to engage in farming. With ten cows and two acres of land I started my journey during the coronavirus crisis.”
Mentioning the reason Rashed said, there was no alternative for him in this period. Using free internet knowledge he is honing cultivation ways.
Although there are no accurate statistics, according to the concerned people, the number of educated youths who have become self-reliant by engaging in agriculture will not be less than two-three lakhs currently.
Lutfor Hussain returned to his hometown of Tangail with higher education at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology and devoted himself to agriculture and farming. Al Helal of Bagdana village in Mahadevpur upazila of Naogaon has become independent after completing his higher education and carrying out agricultural work on orchards, local poultry farming, pigeon rearing, and other agricultural work.
A former economics professor at the University of Dhaka (DU), Nazrul Islam told Bangladesh Post, “With the passage of time, thoughts on farming are changing. Coronavirus has left a grave impact on all formal and informal sectors. Youths suffered the worst.”
Besides he said, the agricultural sector is still alive and well, despite the effects of the Corona. Even after losing their jobs, in the last few months, a countless number of people have returned to the villages and are trying to turn around their lives by setting up farms. Some are building farms for an extra income as well as a side job or business. Many people are collecting crops from farmers and selling them through Facebook pages all over the country.