PARC Introducing 4 New Rice Varieties To Boost Production

Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) is all set to introduce four new seed varieties of long and extra long grain rice to enhance per-acre crop output and farm income, particularly the income of medium and small farmers

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Jan, 2022 ) :Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) is all set to introduce four new seed varieties of long and extra long grain rice to enhance per-acre crop output and farm income, particularly the income of medium and small farmers.

The development of new verities would help in yielding about 80-120 mounds of rice per-acre as against the conventional verities, which was providing 40 to 50 mounds per-acre, said Chairman Pakistan Agriculture Research Council Dr Ghulam Muhammad Ali.

Talking to APP here on Tuesday, he said that these high-yielding seed varieties were cultivated over three different location on test and trail basis and initial results of uniform yield trails were showing encouraging trends while in some locations the output crossed 105 mounds per-acre.

The newly developed varieties are insect resistant, high yielding and would help to enhance local exports of long grain and extra long grain rice, he said adding that work on development of high yielding seed verities of wheat, maize and sugarcane were also in progress.

Dr Ali further informed that PARC had also introduced 04 varieties of high-yielding banana seeds for farmers of Sindh, which enhanced output to 45 tons per-hectares, adding that these verities were also diseases resistant with enhanced shelf life of product.

The PARC has been striving hard to extend the outreach of its research and development to the door steps of farmers living in remote and under developed areas in the country to promote agriculture for poverty alleviation and end hunger and malnutrition, he added.

The PARC in collaboration with its development partners has also been working to promote agriculture in urban and semi-urban areas and had introduced kitchen farming and backyard poultry farming to reduced their reliance on market products, besides fulfilling their daily nutrient demand, he added.

Pakistan was annually spending billion of Dollars on the import of edible oil and pulses, he said adding that PARC under its pulses development program had provided seed of different pulses to local farmers and bumper crop of mung pulse achieved during last season.

The Chairman PARC said that the council was also providing technical assistance and subsidized plants for olive cultivation in potential areas cross the country, adding that the project received overwhelming response and olive oil of international standard produced.