Local farmers come up with new rice varieties

Sentu Kumar Hajong (L) and Mir Abdul Aziz. Photo: Prothom Alo
Sentu Kumar Hajong (L) and Mir Abdul Aziz. Photo: Prothom Alo

Sentu Kumar Hajong and Mir Abdul Aziz are farmers from two corners of the country. One among them stays at the remote area of Nalitabari upazila in Sherpur, while the other at Patharghata in Bogra. Both of them are agro-inventors. Inventing new species of rice is their passion.

The yards of these two farmers are now their laboratories.  Different kinds of rice saplings and seeds are labelled and preserved there.

They are coming up with new species of rice and distributing these among the local farmers. They invented these new species through hybrid means and pollination on different kinds of paddy. They also hybridised different high productive popular species with the local species, producing new characteristics.

Experts said these kinds of experimentations by the farmers have a tremendous and positive impact. Though the production quantity is less and the harvest time lags behind, these kinds of local inventors contribute greatly for the survival of the local species.

House yard cum laboratory

Sentu Kumar Hajong, 47, from Kutubakura village of Nonni union at Nalitabari upazila in Sherpur invented 19 species of rice over 12 years.

Seven of these species are named while the rest are not named as yet. He also cultivated and preserved seeds of 35 native extinct species through hybridisation. More than hundreds of local farmers planted the invented seeds and succeeded. He also trains local farmers regarding the development of new species.

Mir Abdul Aziz, 58, from the remote village of Pahtarghata,  Borguna, invented two new species of Aman and Aush, over a period of eight years. The locals call it ‘Mir Dhan’ (Mir rice) while the coarse one is ‘Mir Mota’ and the finer other is ‘Mir-1’.

Sentu Hajong of Nalitabari hybridises paddy first and later plants the seeds in earthen pots. When the saplings are mature and seeds grow, he collects and preserves them. During Aman season he plants the paddy in small seedbeds.

An insurance company organised a reception in his honour last year and awarded him.

Sentu Hajong could not continue his studies after SSC.  In 2005 a non-government organisation organised a workshop to on inventing new species of paddy. This brief training inspired him to breed new types of paddy.

New species

Sentu hybridised BINA-7 with Pyjam and named it Sentu-1 Sunalo. Dudhbinni and Markabinni have been hybridised to breed Sentu-4 Bishalibinni. Chinishail, Tulshimala, Chapal, Pyjam, Baishmuthhi, Hori, Swarnolota, Ranjit paddy are hybridised to grow new species.

Chinishail, a local species, grow in 30 to 35 quintals per hectare while Sentushail grow in 50 to 56 quintals. Chinishail is 160 centimetres high while Sentushail is not more than 120 centimetres enabling it to survive easily in wind.

Sentu Hajong said, “I heard the Philippine farmers invent and cultivate new kinds of paddy. So why can’t we? But it requires a lot of patience.”

Upazila agriculture officer Sharif Iqbal said, Sentu is continuing his research on his own, using the hand pollination and selection process.

Mir rice, without any fertiliser or pesticide, yields one and a half times more in quantity than the local varieties. This has led to its spread in villages of Patharghata, Bamna and Mothhbaria upazila.

Foreign varieties hybridised with unrecognised ones

Mir Abdul Aziz from Patharghata told Prothom Alo, after cyclone Sidr in 2007 the saline level in the soil of of Patharghata increased, leaving the farmers in a fix about farming. He founded the Madartoli farmers’ organisation with around 50 local farmers to raise awareness about the new species.

He found the still unknown kind of Mir rice sapling while weeding and later discovered it was highly productive.

Abdul Aziz was invited by the Nepal government to attend an international conference of farmers in 2009 as the sole Bangladeshi participant. A Philippine farmer gave him some M-74-1 rice seeds there. He hybridised it with the local Bogi Aush species and thus developed a new species.

The local agriculture department officials and the local farmers at Patharghata said, Sada Mota, Lal Mota, Motha Mota, Kajolshai rice grow at a rate of 1.80 to 2 tonnes per hectare while Mir Mota and Mir-1 yield at 3 to 3.20 tonnes per hectare.

Mirza Moffazzal Islam, chief scientific officer at Bangladesh institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) told Prothom Alo, inventions of local farmers like Sentu Hajong and Mir Abdul Aziz have great importance in developing local species of rice.  And local rice is tastier than the high-yield varieties, he added.

*This piece originally published in Prothom Alo print editon has been rewritten in English by  Nusrat Nowrin.