Munshi Sohag Hossen, who once peddled a van and worked in a shop to pay for his studies, has now turned into a young IT entrepreneur in Magura.

Sohag, a 24-year old youth, still lives with his family at a Gucchagram house in Hazrapur Union under Magura Sadar.

He went to India to pursue graduation in IT in Gujarat Technological University getting Indian ICCR scholarship in 2016.

After completing graduation in India, he returned home in 2020 with a dream to be self-reliant by working in the IT sector as the digital sector of Bangladesh witnessed an impressive progress in recent years.

To meet his dream, he developed a firm named ‘Pollitechs’ in Magura Sadar, which changed his life.

While talking to Sohag recently, it was learnt how a permanent house helped his study and the digital revolution made him an IT entrepreneur.

His family led a refugee life, losing their home and all assets in river erosion in Noakhali in the early 1980s. Then they shifted to Magura in 1986. His mother Shakhina Begum finally got a house in ‘Gucchagram’ made for homeless families in the 1990s.

He lost his father, Munshi Abul Hossen, in 2017. Among three brothers and two sisters, he alone got scope to pursue his studies in his poor family. Two other brothers have Bhangari (small) businesses.

Sohag was a brilliant student and he had to peddle a van and work in a Bhangari shop to earn money to meet educational expenses in his childhood.

He completed his SSC in 2009 and HSC in 2011 from the science group. Completing HSC from Magura Adarsha College, he could not sit for admission test in any public university due to financial insolvency in 2012. He later started study at the chemistry department under the National University.

All of a sudden, the Indian scholarship came as the biggest game-changer for his education.

“My father was a day laborer. Despite our poverty, I had a passion for education. The biggest thing of my life was going to India with a scholarship,” said Sohag.

Recalling his school life, he said he had to hear a lot of insults from his surrounding people. “When I used to do better in study, many students from well-off families insulted me. But some encouraged me,” he said.

When Sohag returned home in 2020, he decided not to join a job, dreaming of being an entrepreneur in the IT sector.

“I got encouraged with the Prime Minister saying that the country is now Digital Bangladesh and her call to be self-employed and entrepreneur,” he said.

READ: Retired postmen to become Nagad entrepreneurs

Sohag has set up an organization called 'Pollitechs' to solve the technological problems of the people around him.

He said, "We’ve developed a big data-management software for Magura Sadar Upazila Administration in order to enable it to know the real-time information about the small ethnic communities and to render services for them accordingly."

His firm is now developing another data management software for Sreepur Upazila in the district for the same purpose.

He said his firm develops different software and earns some Tk 100,000 monthly. He employed three engineers and two marketing officers in his firm.

“We’re also working with some foreign companies like Seekmed, Tirupati International, Sherpaspace,” said Sohag.

Besides, his firm is working for the youth community for their skill development and cyber-security knowledge. “I have trained around 40 businessmen on how to shape their business on the digital platforms,” he said.

Magura Deputy Commissioner Dr Ashraful Alam said, “Since the vision of the Prime Minister is to build a digital Bangladesh, Sohag has taken advantage of that opportunity (of Digital Bangladesh) to become a successful entrepreneur. He has become an IT entrepreneur by using IT outsourcing and freelancing.”