'Initiative taken to expand prominent local rice variety'

FT ONLINE

Agriculture Minister Begum Matia Chowdhury on Tuesday said initiative has been taken to expand the local prominent rice varieties.

“Initiative has been taken to expand the local variety rice on the land where the cultivation of thehigh yielding variety (HYV) is not suitable, ” said the minister while responding to a query madeby treasury bench lawmaker Nizam Uddin Hazari of Feni-2 at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban in the capital.

She said the local variety rice is generally being cultivated mainly during the Aus and Amanseason in the Feni district. The prominent local rice varieties are Bajal, Binnitoa, Kalojira, Saittha,Vaturi, Binni, Chinigura, Kajalshail, Rajashail, Kartikshail, Lotishail and Aganshail, she added.

In addition to this, Matia said the research to include the quality of the local balam rice variety into the HYV rice variety. All the local rice varieties are now being preserved in the Zink Bank, she said.

Even the experimental basis local rice variety cultivation under the research cell of the BADC is now going on for protecting the local, she said.

These traditional old rice varieties have been stored for 25, 50 and 100 years respectively for further use for research purpose only, she said.