A 20-year-old female entrepreneur from south Kashmir¡¯s Pulwama district, one of the volatile areas of the valley, has entered into the world of business and has set up her own fish farm which is winning her hearts.
Hina Parray who studies Business from University of Kashmir told?Indiatimes?that she was always interested in fishing.
¡°I used to go with my father to catch the fishes and that¡¯s when I developed the love for fishes. I decided to set up my own fish farm and my father promised all the help to start this venture,¡± she said.
¡°As I got the full support from my family, I approached the Department of Fisheries in Pulwama, and applied for the license of fish-farm units under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) scheme,¡± she said.
PMMSY is an initiative launched by the Government of India to establish a comprehensive framework and reduce infrastructural gaps in the fisheries sector.
What was more interesting is that in October 2021, Minister of State in the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Dr L. Murugan visited Hina¡¯s fish farm and inaugurated it.
¡°This is how Young India is contributing to New India. Young entrepreneur Hina Parray is an inspiration to the youth of Jammu & Kashmir,¡± the minister said while inaugurating the fish farm.
Hina is also happy over the minister¡¯s arrival for its inauguration. ¡°This means a lot to us,¡± she said.
Hina said that her fish farm is based on Recirculatory Aquaculture Systems (RAS) technology for the culture of high-quality rainbow trout fishes.
¡°The water that we use is not wasted, it is recycled again and put to the use of the farm,¡± she said.?
Narrating about her journey further, Hina said that all this started after selling a piece of land to construct the fish farm.
¡°It was tough in the beginning to work and understand but gradually we coped up with the time,¡± she said.
It is pertinent to mention here that Kashmir is known for the trout fishes because this fish is only found in rivers and lakes of the mountainous regions. Hina has been trying hard to increase its production.
Her units came up at an estimated cost of Rs 2.45 crore with a total subsidy of Rs 60 lakhs under PMMSY. She has two units currently and houses ten circular tanks with a capacity of 50,000 litres of water each.
¡°As we completed its one-year last month, we had an annual production of worth Rs 25 lakhs. The work is increasing and we are expecting more good production,¡± she said.
Hina runs an Instagram page with the name- Valley Trout, where she gets the orders from the online customers.??
She stressed that youth should look beyond government jobs now.
¡°I am confused to see why people are only after government jobs, especially in Kashmir. They need to work on themselves and set up their own ventures. So, to provide jobs to others as well,¡± she said.
With her own venture, she has given jobs to at least ten people. ¡°They are earning their bread and butter from there and I am happy to see that I am helping someone in some way,¡± she said.
Hina aspires to expand her business. ¡°I am planning to call the experts from Gujarat who can have a look at my venture and teach how to go into the bigger market,¡± she said.
She thanked J&K Lieutenant Governor (LG) Manoj Sinha and central government for introducing such schemes to youth of the valley.
¡°All this was not possible without this scheme,¡± said the young entrepreneur who hails from Jawbehara area of Awantipora in Pulwama district.
She also advised the girls to choose the career that they want to pursue.
¡°People in Kashmir have conservative mindset. They would keep criticising you. But I would suggest going for something that you are interested in,¡± she said.?
Hina said that she has a dream to see the fishes of her farm being exported to the international market.
¡°It will also give a boost to the trout fishes here and may help in increasing their demands across the world,¡± she concluded.