Abundant Collection of Local and Foreign Fruits in Chandina

Awaoral village in the No. 9 Maizkhar union of Chandina, Comilla. Walking along the quiet dirt paths of this locality reveals a piece of green paradise. Mohammad Rafiqul Islam Kala Mia, an enterprising man of the village, has established a remarkable local and foreign fruit orchard through his own initiative and hard work. Spanning across 72 decimals of land, this orchard is like a magnificent canvas of nature, where soil and human effort have brought forth rare fruits from various corners of the world.Just two years ago, driven by a cherished dream and the urge to do something meaningful, Rafiqul Islam invested 150,000 Taka as capital. His goal was to enrich his small piece of land with fruits and simultaneously provide the local people with nutritious and pesticide-free fruit flavors. That dream has now turned into reality. Every corner of the 72-decimal land is now adorned with eye-catching fruit trees.The biggest attraction of this orchard is its diverse fruit collection. Surpassing local fruits, prestigious varieties from various countries around the world have spread their branches here. Entering the orchard, one will notice Vietnamese oranges and variegated oranges. The golden and green oranges hanging in clusters on the branches are not only beautiful to look at, but their inner juicy segments are also sweet and delicious. Nearby are Japanese Banana Mango, Baruipuri mango, and the popular Amrapali mango. When the branches bend under the weight of the mangoes, a mesmerizing sight is created.Not just mangoes or oranges, this collection of fruits has been further enriched by Vietnamese pomelo, Japanese persimmon, plums, Vietnamese coconuts, and sweet sugarcane. Keeping pace with these exotic trees, our familiar local fruits are also growing quite well. The most reassuring part is that every single fruit in this orchard is completely pesticide-free. Organic or eco-friendly methods are used instead of harmful chemical fertilizers or pesticides for plant care. Consequently, the fruits here are extremely nutritious and safe.The commercial success of the orchard is also quite encouraging. Ever since its establishment, this orchard has started bringing smiles to Rafiqul Islam’s face. Last year, he sold fruits worth about 50,000 Taka from this orchard. This year, that sales figure has surpassed the previous one, with sales reaching approximately 80,000 Taka so far. Behind this success lies the natural taste and quality of the fruits. Rafiqul Islam generally sells these fruits wholesale in the local market. However, as the fame of his orchard has spread, he no longer has to rely solely on the market. People from various distant areas of Comilla, beyond just Chandina, rush to this orchard. They inspect fresh fruits and buy them with great joy directly from the trees or the orchard.Entrepreneur Rafiqul Islam now has a resolute determination in his eyes to build a new future. He does not want to stop here. His future plan is to further expand the scope of this orchard. He wants to collect saplings of various rare and advanced fruit varieties from different parts of the country and, if possible, from abroad to make the orchard even larger. His main goal is to fill the orchard with foreign fruits alongside local ones, so that the people of Bangladesh, instead of spending extra money on imported fruits from abroad, can enjoy the true taste of foreign fruits grown right on their own country's soil.Such an extraordinary initiative by an ordinary man is not only changing his own fortune but also inspiring the local youth to do something new in the agricultural sector. Rafiqul Islam’s successful fruit orchard is now a unique pride of Chandina's green nature.