Potato Can be Stored by Drying

Potato is the world's fourth largest food crop - following maize, wheat and rice. Potato is an important crop of the Rabi Season in Bangladesh, providing about 8.5 million tons food supply in each year.

Potato can not be stored at room temperature. Because, It will grow sprouts and will be no more edible. In general, farmers keep their potato in the cold store. But irregular supply of electricity and load-shading disrupts the storing process and potato start decaying.

This is the sad story of Potato cultivation in Bangladesh.But, we can solve the problem by applying a simple technology. Potato can be stored by drying and the process needs only a few steps:

1.   Potato needs to be boiled and skin should be removed after boiling
2.   Boiled potato should be mashed in to paste or small fragments and sun dried up to 10 to 11 % of moisture level
3.   Sun dried potato fragments should be kept in polythene bag or PET bottles in airtight condition

Dried potato fragments  with 10~11% moisture level can be kept in polythene bags or PET bottles for round the year. Dried potato fragments can be used in preparation of soups, cakes, curries and in other relevant recipes.

Small entrepreneurs can take the process as a business project. Here is the link for YouTube video, where you can see the whole process in step by step:

 https://youtu.be/2AdyfYhRQNM

Nourishing the History and Heritage and Selling the Local Famous Products: The Business Concept of "Upa Zilla Info-Museum" in  Bangladesh

1. There is an urgent need for maintaining, nourishing and caring the history and heritage of Bangladesh like a child. A country can enthusiastically nourish its own history, heritage and culture only by herself.

2. In a developing country, it is a very difficult task to nourish a sector which is not proven as 'economically profitable'. In Bangladesh 'Archiving' or establishing small 'Local museum' at Upa Zilla level is holding its position under this non-profit category. But, the situation can be changed by doing some 'home work' with the problem. Because on the other side of every problem there is a solution of the same hiding unnoticed - just we need to discover and implement it.

3. Initially, some brave entrepreneurs are needed to "make, own and show" the sample to the people technique for small and profitable entrepreneurship with archiving at some places in Bangladesh. After receiving the feed back and earning of experiences from the trial and error method, country wise expansion program may be taken later.

4. The concept is: There may be an "Upa Zilla Info-Museum" at the Upa Zilla level that can be owned by an individual or an NGO. At this moment 'Archiving' or 'Local Museum' may not come as the 'Main Dish' of the Info Museum. Let it come with a side dish or even 'Salad' or Salt, ultimately it will capture its' position by its own virtue.  

5. The "Upa Zilla Info-Museum" may collect and display local old documents, literature, relevant to the culture and the concerned Upa Zilla and the society. It can also collect and display antiques, samples of marketable local handicrafts and sale famous foods or agricultural products. People may enter in the display to see the old items and can purchase the local handicrafts, food and other agricultural products. Earning from the sales profit will help to run the center

6. At the 'Upa Zilla Info-Museum' people will supply their products, people will come to see their product and people will purchase their product. Like democracy, the salable product will be of the people, by the people and for the people.

7. If anybody can make it a successful venture in any place, people from other areas of the country will come forward to try with this business idea.  This is simply a small business concept and we hope that the later versions of the "Upa Zilla Info -Museum" will be of higher quality and more successful. 

THE BIRTH OF AN ISLAND AND EXTENSION OF FOREST IN THE SUNDARBAN AREA OF THE BAY OF BENGAL

(Steps 9,10,11 and 12)

Step 9. 

New shoots are emerging from the root system and acquiring more spaces.

Step 10. 

Grasses are growing more and acquiring spaces all over the island @ 360^o horizontally.

Step 11.

At last the green gasses have covered almost all over the new island.

Step 12. 

By this time, other species of salinity tolerant plantlets come through water streams to occupy the island. Some Sundari plantlets are seen germinating here.  

THE BIRTH OF AN ISLAND AND EXTENSION OF FOREST IN THE SUNDARBAN AREA OF THE BAY OF BENGAL

(Steps 4,5,6,7 and 8)

Step 4. Another newly grown up island is seen on the left side of the photograph. Only different types of salinity tolerant plants have started occupying the land at the moment. Consequently, animals will start coming later after ensuring their food.

Step 5. At first, the Salinity tolerant grasses start growing on the new-born island. Burgeoning roots are the vegetative propagation material of the grasses that start growing new leafs soon after anchoring their roots in the top soil. Sprouting roots are seen on the soft muddy soil.

Step 6. Constant deposition of silts soon covers up the roots of the grass that enables the root system consuming of more nutrients for a vigorous and continuous growth.

	7. Strongly established grass bushes are growing and becoming taller Step 8. Everyday and night rivers have been continuously bringing new raw materials to form the islands in the Bay of Bengal. Sunset is being seen from a new born island near Sundarban.

THE Birth of an island AND EXTENSION OF forest IN the sundarban area of the bay of bengal

(Step 2 & 3)

Step 2. Within 10-15 days, freshwater weeds like water hyacinths die due to excess salinity in the water. At the entering points of the Bay of Bengal there are no water hyacinths seen floating on the Channels. After complete decomposition of the living freshwater fauna, their residues and other river sediments are deposited on the bottom of the Bay of Bengal.

                                     (Photo: Mohammad Abdullah)

You may notice there are no water hyacinth floating in the river.

Step 3. 

A new-born island in the Bay of Bengal. Till the moment, no human being steps on this virgin island for cultivation or living.

(Photo: Mohammad Abdullah)