Bangladesh Rice Research Institute has developed an early maturing highly productive monsoon rice variety suitable for Aman season.
National Seed Board (NSB) in its meeting on Wednesday gave release approval to the grain – BRRI dhan87 – which has been bred through a cross between BRRI released earlier rice variety, BRRI dhan29 and a wild rice called Oryza rufipogon.
BRRI scientists told UNB that the newly released variety BRRI dhan87 will mature up to 7
days earlier than BRRI dhan49, which BRRI had released 10 years back as an Aman variety. The duration of the new one is found to 125 to 130 days comparing to 135 days required for BRRI dhan49 to grow.
As against BRRI dhan49’s per hectare productivity of five tons, the BRRI dhan87 will grow 6.5 tons a hectare. The new variety’s yield potential (6.5 tons/hectare) is at par Bangladesh’s most popular Aman season rice variety Mukta (BR 11). It’s a welcome move as largely degenerated Mukta, released nearly 38 years ago, badly required a good varietal replacement.
BRRI dhan87 has tough culm, light green leaf, and long, wide and erect flag leaf. The panicles are long and remain visible through flag leaves during ripening. The grain is long and the kernel is straight.
