Agartala: The agriculture scientists of Tripura have developed three varieties of climate-resilient paddy, keeping in view the agro-climatic conditions of the state.
The specialty of these three varieties lies in their flood-resilient characteristics, Agriculture Minister of Tripura Ratan Lal Nath said on Friday.
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“Even if the paddy plants remain underwater for 15 days at a stretch, the flooding will not adversely impact the health of the crop. Scientists here in Tripura have developed the varieties named Swarna Sub-1, IR8, and Arundhuti. We shall introduce these three varieties in the field very soon,” the Minister informed media persons.
He says that the government (or relevant authorities) is now adopting several innovative techniques to mitigate the losses farmers incur during floods. “We are also working on climate-mart seeds,” he pointed out.
Speaking at a press conference on the recently concluded Viksit Krishi Sankalpa Yatra, a 15-day-long campaign on the agricultural sector, Nath said, “Officials conducted a total of 873 meetings to exchange views with the farmers during the period between May 29 and June 12.”
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Officers and scientists from KVKs and ICAR covered almost 1.95 lakh farmers coming from 956 GPs and VCs. It should also be noted here that 34 percent of the total farmers covered under the scheme are women farmers.”
Highlighting the importance of technology in the agriculture sector, Nath said, “Since we have limited land, we have to be wise while determining the suitable crop for plantation. Considering this, we have launched soil testing facilities. We have set up permanent laboratories in five districts, and in addition, we have deployed five mobile vans to collect soil samples and conduct testing in the remaining parts of the state.”
On the shortfall in production, the Minister said, “Out of 58 total rural development blocks, 30 blocks are self-sufficient in agricultural production. South Tripura, Sepahijala, and Gomati districts are also self-reliant in agricultural production. Dhalai and Khowai are two districts that are lagging behind with a wafer-thin margin of a few thousand metric tons, while Unakoti has a shortfall of around 10,000 to 11,000 metric tons. West Tripura and North Tripura have to work a lot to bridge the shortfall between required production and actual production.”