A young woman livestock entrepreneur in North Kashmir’s Bandipora district has become an example to emulate through her sheer grit, determination and hard work.
Mumtaza begum is a living example of self empowerment and an inspiring success story. Hailing from Watrina village of Bandipora, Mumtaza has been successfully running her own sheep farm of more than two hundred sheep.
Mumtaza said being an educated woman; she always wanted to live her dream of an empowered and fulfilled life. “But fate had something different in store for me. I had to leave college, however it didn’t put a stop to my passion of exploring a successful career,” she added.
Mumtaza said of the limited options that she would think of pursuing on account of financial and social constraints, a career in sheep farming fascinated her most and felt more promising.
She said her choice was instinctively driven, for she had an exposure and introduction to sheep farming as her family was associated with the livestock farming on a marginal scale with a mere 10-15 sheep.
She said taking up sheep farming on such a limited scale was not worth pursuing as a career for a dreamer. She wanted to increase flock size to kick-start her livestock enterprise and make it commercial and profitable.
The young entrepreneur stepped out of her home and sought assistance from the department of Sheep Husbandry Bandipora. “I was guided by the department to apply for the then active subsidy based state sponsored scheme in ‘Mini Sheep Farms’ and I got selected for the sheep unit under the said scheme in Feb 2019. I was allotted a unit of 50 sheep in the same month,” she said.
She said given the labour-intensive nature of the job, the beginning was not so easy. However her dedication and hard work saw her fortunes grow by leaps and bounds over the years.
“Behind every successful woman is a supportive husband. A lot of success in my endeavour would never have been possible without the consistent support of my husband. He has always been my motivation and emotional support and has stood by me through thick and thin,” she said.
Mumtaza said that the supportive role of a spouse becomes much more important for female entrepreneurs with children.
“Every fortune comes with its own set of impediments and in my journey to success I would give credit to the support extended by the Sheep Husbandry department” she added.
She said that life has improved significantly for her since she took up sheep farming. “I feel more fulfilled and satisfied. I work as much as I can and when I can. I have the full support of my family.
“I want to tell all the women that they should use all the opportunities that are available to them to improve their socio-economic condition. It is a special satisfaction when you can prove to yourself and also to others that you can make life better,” she said.
Presently Mumtaza is in possession of a well-established and commercial sheep farm of more than two hundred sheep which make her success an inspiration for thousands of farmers particularly women in the district and beyond.
