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Produce salinity-tolerant variety of rice

Matia urges agri scientists

A Correspondent, Gazipur
Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury yesterday underscored the need for cultivating salinity-tolerant variety of rice.
The minister said the main obstacle in cultivation of paddy in the southern region during the dry season is salinity.
She was speaking as the chief guest at the annual research review 2007-08 of Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI).
The review meeting that started yesterday would continue till March 18 where nine keynote papers and 27 reports would be presented.
The agriculture minister said the main crop of the farmers of southern areas is aman paddy. But due to different natural disasters, including cyclone and tidal surge, the farmers fail to harvest. So, the cultivation of
paddy in these fields during the dry season has to be increased.
Matia Chowdhury said paddy has to be cultivated in the land, which remains after shrimp farming during the dry season.
"Bio-technology is now the demand of time. But it is sad that we could not yet formulate bio-safety rule,” she added.
She urged the agricultural scientists to take initiative in this regard.
The minister said, "We have to be careful about using hybrid variety.” She also advised cutting import of hybrid seed.
The agriculture minister said the main problem in north Bengal is brown grasshopper. She urged the scientists to do research on the gene of brown grasshopper to stop its menace.
Matia Chowdhury said winter is the safe season for
crops. More crops have to be produced in this season. She said, “We are going to expand cultivation of salinity-tolerant variety of rice (BR-47) quickly.’’
The minister criticised the irrigation system in the northern area using deep tube-wells. She said it depletes water level alarmingly.
The government is trying to take necessary steps for excavation of the Gorai, she added.
"We are speaking against use of chemical fertilisers, but we are not taking the reality into consideration,” she said, adding that the Awami League government in its stint from 1996 to 2001 took a number of steps in this regard.
She said the immediate past caretaker government also gave emphasis on the use of bio-fertiliser but the project money was misused.
Director General of BRRI Dr Mohammad Firoz Shah Sikder presided over the programme while Awami League lawmakers from Gazipur-1 and 2 constituencies AKM Mozammel Haque and Zahid Ahsan Russell and Agriculture Secretary Dr CQK Mustaq Ahmed also spoke.