Cultivation of per kilogram Boro paddy will require 550-650 liters of water through controlled irrigation management, finds a new survey.
It was revealed by the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) recently.
At a webinar on Sunday, Agriculture Minister Mohammad Abdur Razzaque asked all the concerned institutions including the Water Development Board (WDB) for conducting research work simultaneously to resolve the confusion about water wastage in Boro paddy.
The minister said this while speaking at the webinar titled ‘Groundwater Sustainability and Rice Production in North-West Bangladesh’ organised by Bangladesh Rice Research Institute in collaboration with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization of Australia (CSIRO), University of Southern Queensland (USQ), ACAIR and Australian AID.
Agriculture Secretary Sayedul Islam, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council Executive Chairman Sheikh Mohammad Bakhtiyar, Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation Chairman AFM Hayatullah, Agriculture Extension Department Director General Md Benazir Alam and Barind Multipurpose Development Authority Executive Director Md Abdur Rashid attended the webinar. Bangladesh Agricultural University Professor Emeritus and former Vice-Chancellor Dr MA Sattar Mandal, Department of Agricultural Extension former Director General Dr Hamidur Rahman joined the webinar as expert panel.
Bangladesh Rice Research Institute Irrigation and Water Management Department Chief Scientific Officer and Chief Dr Md Moniruzzaman, and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) Australia Principal Research Scientist Dr Mohammed Mainuddin presented two research papers.
Professor Emeritus Dr MA Sattar Mandal said that the cultivation of boro paddy was not the only reason for the lowering of groundwater level in the north-western part of the country.
Department of Agricultural Extension Former Director General Hamidur Rahman said that in order to manage sustainable groundwater in the north-western part of the country, it is necessary to increase the use of surface water with integrated initiatives.
Increasing the use of water conservation in rivers, canals will enable successful cultivation of paddy and other crops in the north-western part of the country, he stated.
