NEW DELHI: The Centre has introduced a new high-yielding paddy variety, developed from two varieties in the Philippines, to farmers in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha, in an initiative to boost rice production. According to experts, the new variety, ‘Malaviya Manila Sinchit Dhan-1’ (MMSD), has the potential to transform rice cultivation in eastern India, where productivity has stagnated.After nearly 18 years of research, the drought-resistant and high-yielding MMSD variety was developed through a collaboration between the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and the International Rice Research Institute in Manila. The productivity of this new variety surpasses that of conventional varieties. Additionally, it matures early and has a strong stem that allows it to withstand wind and drought conditions.“The productivity of the variety is 55-64 quintals per hectare, double the average productivity in India. It increases production by 5-10% over normal varieties,” Dr Shravan Kumar Singh, BHU’s lead scientist who developed the variety said. India’s average rice production is nearly 29 quintals. “Maturity time of the variety is 115-120 days against 135-150 of normal varieties,” said Singh.Scientists used two IR-series rice varieties, indigenous to the Philippines, to develop MMSD. IR-8, famous variety of the IR series, was considered ‘miracle rice’ in the 1970s. It helped increase global food production to counter hunger.According to the ICAR assessment, MMSD has an encouraging response in Bihar, UP and Odisha. Grain production was higher than 10% in these states compared to others. This early variety takes 115 days to ripen, and grain quality is better than the existing variety, which would help fetch higher prices to growers.“During the de-husking, hulling, and milling process, head rice (whole rice) recovery percentage is 63.5%, whereas conventional rice gets more broken and reduces market value,” said Singh.
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