RANGPUR, Oct 23, 2023 (BSS) - Farmers of the region will get all-out
assistance and technologies to expand cultivation of short duration and
highly profitable BARI Sarisa-14 for increasing oilseed production to meet
the edible demand locally.
 
Director General (DG) of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI)
Agriculturist Dr. Debasish Sarker said this at a function held at Chengmari
Union Parishad (UP) hall room in Mithapukur upazila here on Sunday afternoon
as the chief guest.
 
The Regional Agricultural Research Station (RARS) of BARI at Burirhat in
Rangpur organised the event to distribute BARI Sarisa-14 seed and other
inputs among the farmers of different villages under Mahiyarpur Block in
Chengmari union of the upazila free of cost.
 
Chief Scientific Officer of RARS of BARI at Burirhat in Rangpur Agriculturist
Dr. Ashis Kumar Saha presided over the function.
 
Principal Scientific Officer of On-Farm Research Division of BARI at
Alamnagar in Rangpur Dr Md Al-Amin Hossain Talukder, its Scientific Officer
Dr. Supriyo Ghosh and officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension
(DAE) were present, among others.
 
Dr. Saha said 200 exhibition plots of BARI Sarisa-14 and BARI Sarisa-18 are
being set up in Rangpur division every crop season under the initiative of
BARI with assistance of the DAE to demonstrate farming technology of the
crop.
 
"We are providing training on production and seed storage of BARI Sarisa-14
and distributing cost-free inputs at farmers' level during the off-season in
between Aman paddy and Boro paddy farming since 2019 in Chengmari union of
the upazila," he said.
 
RARS of BARI also provided training to farmers on cultivation of short
duration but high yielding Aman rice varieties BRRI dhan-75 and BINA Dhan-17
and rice seeds free of cost this season to transform Mahiyarpur Block into an
ideal area for mustard production during the off-season.
 
"Rangpur Regional Stations of Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) and
Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) are extending support for
cultivation of short duration Aman rice there followed by BARI Sarisa-14 and
Boro rice farming," he said.
 
He said there is scope for lucrative production of BARI Sarisa-14 during the
off-season between Aman paddy and Boro paddy cultivation in four lakh
hectares of double-cropped land in all five districts of the region.
 
The BARI Chief assured farmers of providing all-out support for farming of
BARI Sarisa-14 in a profitable manner to further enhance production of the
oilseed.
 
"We will make available necessary mobile machinery for separation of oil from
mustard seeds in an improved manner at village levels," he said, and hoped
that Mahiyarpur Block would become a role model in oilseed mustard
production.