From Our Correspondent
JOWAI: Amid growing demand for the rice hybrid Arize-6444 among the farmers in Jaintia Hills, the Department of Agriculture is finding it tough to supply the same in desired quantities.
According to officials of the Department of Agriculture in Jaintia Hills, Arize-6444 was introduced to farmers about four years ago and its demand has been increasing by the year since then.
“Only 525 kilogram of the rice hybrid- Arize-6444 has been supplied to the department whereas the demand is over 3 metric tonnes,” an official of the Agriculture department said while adding that only 1 kg of the rice hybrid is being given to each farmer.
The District Agriculture Office was visited by hundreds of farmers who had come from various parts of Jaintia Hills to collect the rice hybrid.
Iaraplang Dkhar, a farmer from Khanduli village says that cultivation of the hybrid Ariize-6444 helped him in obtaining an additional yield. “The yield is about 10-15 gunny bags per kilogram of hybrid rice seed,” he said.
Besides hybrids rice seeds Jaintia Hills has around 110 varieties of rice grown by farmers
“Even though, the hybrid-6444 is giving an additional yield, I requested the farmers not to neglect the local varieties”, the District Agriculture Officer, M Tariang said.