Rangpur Correspondent :
Experts at a crop cutting ceremony have laid emphasis on expanded cultivation of the off-season, short duration and indigenous parija rice as an additional Aus crop for attaining national food security.
RDRS Bangladesh, an NGO, organised the ceremony on Saturday at a farmers’ field day for harvesting parija rice at the field of farmer Abdur Rahman Master in village Baro Balia under Balia union of Sadar upazila in Thakurgaon district.
The NGO organised the field day under the five-year term ‘Improving Food Security Governance in South & Southeast Asia through Strengthened Participation of Organisations of Marginalised Farmers’ Regional Project.’
The regional project is being implemented in Bangladesh, Nepal, India and Myanmar to improve livelihood of 10.20 lakh marginalised households, including ethnic communities, with financial assistance of the European Union and Dan Church Aid.
Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) for Thakurgaon Arshed Ali attended the occasion as the chief guest with Chairman (Ad-hoc Committee) of Balia Union Federation Tomiz Udin in the chair.
Chairman of Balia union Nur-e-Alam Siddique Mufti attended the occasion as the special guest.
Sub-assistant agriculture officer Abdur Rahim, Project Manager of Regional Food Security Governance Project for Thakurgaon Mahfuz Alam, Agriculture Officer Mahfuzur Rahman addressed.
The main objective of the filed day was to demonstrate the ‘early Aman rice-mustard- potato-mungbean-parija (Aus) cropping pattern’ evolved by RDRS Bangladesh to enable the farmers in getting four crops from same land annually.
Mahfuz Alam said expanded cultivation of parija rice as Aus crop during the off season between Boro and Aman cultivations without supplementary irrigation can increase rice production despite climate change to ensure food security.
“The farmers completed transplantation of 15 to 20 day-old parija rice seedling by May 31 last and the harvest will end by August 15 next to produce 3.5 to 4.14 tonnes additional paddy as Aus crop per hectare on an average,” he said.
Mahfuzur Rahman said parija rice can be harvested in 70 to 75 days after seedling transplantation during the off season in between late May and mid-August when the fields remain fallow after Boro harvest and before T-Aman plantation.
The chief guest suggested farmers for expanding parija rice cultivation that requires no supplementary irrigation as its plants grow well making best use of unused seasonal rain waters during the months of May, June and July to produce additional rice.
