Enhanced farming of short duration Aus paddy during the off-season
through reducing Boro cultivation can ensure national food security
improving environment, ecology and bio-diversity, experts said here
yesterday.
They were addressing a farmers’ field day organised for harvesting Aus
paddy and selecting its most viable variety at the field of farmer
Monwar Hossain in village Thakurdaspur under Kawnia upazila.
Rangpur Regional Station of Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI)
in association with the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE)
organised the occasion under the Integrated Agriculture Productivity
Project (IAPP).
The BRRI has been demonstrating Aus paddy cultivation using the latest
technologies during off-season between late May and early August to
inspire farmers in cultivating Aus paddies replacing costly Boro
cultivation that requires huge irrigation waters.
Principal Scientific Officer of Rangpur Regional Station of BRRI Dr
Gous Ali attended the occasion as the chief guest with Kawnia Upazila
Agriculture Officer Mahbubur Rahman in the chair.
Regional Director of Agriculture Information Service Abu Sayem
delivered welcome speech narrating various steps taken by the present
government for enhancing cultivation of eco-friendly Aus paddies.
Senior Scientific Officer of BRRI Rakibul Hassan narrated the latest
technologies of farming short duration variety Aus paddies including
BRRI Dhan 26, BRRI Dhan 48 and BRRI dhan 55 those yielded up to 4.7
tones paddy per hectare after harvest.
District Coordinator of IAPP Abu Bakar Saiful Islam attended the
ceremony as the special guest and said cultivation of short duration
(100-105 days) Aus paddies require only 4-5 irrigations when Boro
farming requires at least 20-30 times irrigations.
Scientific Officer of Rangpur Regional Station of Bangladesh Rice
Research Institute (BARI) Afzal Hossain, a number of Sub-assistant
Agriculture Officers of DAE, male and female members of the local
Livelihoods Farmers School (LFS), also addressed.
The chief guest said cultivation of Aus paddies at lower costs, mostly
using unused seasonal rain waters, must be increased during the off
season as an additional substitute cereal crop to costly Boro farming
without hampering transplanted Aman cultivation.
Production of one kilogram Boro rice requires minimum 3,000 litres
irrigated water reducing underground water reserves at alarming rates
adversely affecting environment, ecology, biodiversity and
accelerating desertification, he said.
He suggested for popularizing Aus cultivation without hampering Aman
cultivation, mostly using rain waters, to gradually replace more water
consuming Boro paddies with other winter crops to keep rice production
intact for food security under adverse climate.
– BSS, Rangpur
