DHAKA, Dec 28, 2023 (BSS) - Darkness of night breaks the light of day,  and out of the depths of pain comes salvation. With such a notion that deeply rooted in a poverty-stricken village woman, she learned the secret to success.

She was forty-five-year-old Jahanara Begum whose indomitable courage and determination created a path where she can thrive. In her early years of life she had a keen desire to study, but she could not continue her study after class five for the curse of poverty.

Jahanara could not bid farewell to odds that obstructed her education, subsequently she was married off at the age of 14 years.

With a poor husband as her life partner, the pathfinder Jahanara pledged to provide education to her children that she could not make for herself.  She broached the idea of creating a nursery,  and crafted a business through hard work leading her to becoming a successful entrepreneur. She was awarded nationally and was honoured with ‘Joyeeta Award’.
 
Jahanara used to live at Chalbandh village under Bishwambharpur upazila of Sunamganj district. She has two children. Her house is situated on three acres of land and is full of various types of trees including mango, jackfruit, blackberry, orange, litchi, papaya, guava, coconut, betel nut, custard apple and olive. Most of those are fruit trees. Currently, she also planted green Malta, besides bringing up different types of saplings of mango including Haribhanga, Himsagar and Amrapali.
 
Jahanara said she had a 10-member family including her brothers and sisters and they were leading a hard life. Her husband was a farmer with no land. Later, they were blessed with two children.

She realised it well that she had to rely on patience and hard work to usher in a new era of survival and her family's wellbeing.

 Their elder son Belal Hossain passed primary school in 2006. Money will be needed to run his education. But they have no enough money.
 
Later, Jahanara came to know that the women of her village formed a samity (association). She became a member of the samity and after few days she got a call for different trainings from upazila. She received three-day training on nursery. For the first time in her life, she went to upazila headquarters as she never went out of her village. She had some seeds of chili and papaya and started her works. Later, she took a loan of Taka 4000 and started working relentlessly.

On the first day, Jahanara’s husband Hasan took 50 saplings and sold those at a local village market. She paid her loan after six months. After that, she moves on and the income from the nursery increases. And now, people of her upazila come to buy saplings from her home. She along with her husband are now taking care of their nursery alongwith three helping hands.
 
Presently, there are about 60,000 saplings in the nursery and they produce about  three lakh saplings every year.
 
Jahanara said she started fish farming from 2009 at two ponds.

 She got award as a successful woman in the district in 2010.

The story of Jahanara leaves for us the lesson that the real reason behind every success lies in determination, courage, hard work and perseverance. Revival begins with a hope, which turns into an idea and then becomes an objective-- this is what a determined Jahanara teaches us.