FARMERS have completed harvesting of early variety aman paddy BRRI Dhan 33 in the poverty-stricken five districts of the Rangpur region much ahead of the traditional harvesting period of transplanted aman this year.
   Officials said that the farmers cultivated the short duration early-variety paddy at a larger scale with a view to getting early harvest and mitigating crisis of seasonal monga and got an excellent yield rate.
   Bangladesh Rice Research Institute has invented the new technology of farming early variety of aman paddy after long research through Direct Seeded Rice method to mitigate monga, especially during the Bangla months of Aswin and Kartik, they said.
   With financial support from the Research Initiatives Bangladesh and technical assistance from the BRRI the project on expanding Early Rice Cultivation through Direct Seeded Rice was launched in 2006 for the first time on a
   larger scale by three non-governmental organisations — TMSS, USS, RDRS — and government organisation BRDB under the Northwest Focal Area Forum.
   Under the project, 3,000 acres of land involving 10,000 farmers was brought under farming of BRRI Dhan 33 in 2006 in these districts that yielded expected results.
   This year, 1,000 acres of land were brought under cultivation of this variety of rice in Rangpur, Kurigram, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat and Nilphamari and Rangpur-Dinajpur Rural Service alone helped 1,500 farmers in cultivating the same in over 500 acres of land.
   More NGOs including Solidarity, Jibika, Inter Cooperation Leaf, and some others were involved in popularising farming of the early variety of rice. A total of 25 NGOs have cultivated the paddy under the assistances of the RDRS this year and the RDRS is planning to bring about 1,200 acres land under its farming next year in the area.
   Harvesting of the paddy began in the first week of October that continued till October 31 last and the yield rate of the dry paddy stood at 4.5 to 5 tonnes per hectare on an average, officials said.
   The harvesting was completed within the peak monga period instead of traditional period of harvesting transplanted aman paddy from late November, which also helped by and large in eliminating job crisis of over 50,000 farm labourers.
   General Officer Commanding of 66 Artillery Division and Rangpur Area Commander Major General Syed Fatemy Ahmed Roomy, deputy commissioners, UNOs, scientists and experts of the BRRI and other organisations and beneficiary farmers and villagers took part in the crop-cutting ceremonies about six to eight weeks ahead of the traditional transplanted aman harvesting period in the area.
   Inventor of the technology and principal scientific officer of Rangpur Station of the BRRI Dr Abdul Mazid told the news agency on Saturday that large-scale farming of the rice would bring harvesting periods of all crops 40 to 60 days ahead than that of the traditional periods and the farmers would be benefited by and large through cultivating subsequent rabi crops and vegetables in relay methods in the same land.
   The technology will expedite eradicating seasonal monga from the region and increase the crop intensity and overall crop productions at the earlier periods throughout the year and also reduce risks of natural calamities on the growing crops in the fields, he said.
   BRRI scientific officer Anwarul Haque underscored the need for increasing production of seeds of BRRI Dhan 33 by various government departments, other organisations and NGOs to provide the same to the farmers for expanding its cultivation further at a larger scale.
   The farmers would be benefited highly throughout the country if the technology were adopted on a larger scale everywhere, he added.

THE Rapid Action Battalion rescued an abducted man from village Mohesh-Raohali under Tarash upazila in Sirajganj Saturday.
   On information, the law enforcers raided the village and rescued Abdul Hakim of village Delua under Belkuchi upazila in the district at about 6:00pm. But the abductors managed to flee the scene.
   RAB officials said a gang of kidnappers allegedly led by Lablu, Lalon, Zillur and Zakrul of the same village abducted Hakim, a weaver, from his native area on November 4, 2007.
   Later, his younger brother filed a case with the police.