Revival of Indigenous rice varieties in West Bengal

Undivided Bengal had a rich flora and fauna. In case of rice, once upon a time there was about 4,800 different verities of rice were cultivated in Bengal. Since the last forty years and especially after the “Green Revolution” with the increase of mixed verities hybrid rice cultivation all these indigenous verities of rice have been under the threat.  Recently Government of West Bengal has initiated efforts to recover those “for ever lost verities” of rice. Not only the rice but huge store of Bengal biodiversity is also at stake due to increase use of chemical fertilizer, pesticides and hybrid seeds. For this reason, not only the biodiversity is gradually disrupted, but also the fertility of the land is decreasing and new insecticide resistant varieties of pests are emerging. With the crops, the poisonous chemicals are entering into the ecosystem and ultimately to the human being in various ways.

There is a world wide effort to save the earth from ”chemical poisoning”. In this line few state sponsored agriculture farm in Nadia and Bankura district of West Bengal has recovered about 70 indigenous verities of rice. Every year they are also imparting training to about 300 farmers to use the bio-fertilizer. According to them indigenous verities of rice will save environment and also will help in saving underground water resources. The indigenous verities of rice required less water and can also withstand increasing salinity, draught.

Source Anandbazar Patrika 24^th October 2007