Why in the news?
Two farmers in South 24 Parganas district in West Bengal have brought about 30 cents of land under pokkali sowing on an experimental basis. These farmers have brought this rice variety through the Breakthrough Science Society, which has science clubs in the Sundarbans.
About pokkali variety of rice
- The pokkali variety is known for its saltwater resistance.
- It flourishes in the paddy fields of coastal Alappuzha, Ernakulam and Thrissur districts. The uniqueness of the rice has brought it the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
- Pokkali Rice has been registered with the Geographical Indications (GI) registry of Government of India in 2008.
- Five kilos of Vyttila-11 variety of pokkali seedlings were sent by post by Francis Kalathungal, who is part of the Pokkali Samrakshana Samithi, which has been at the vanguard of a movement to revive pokkali cultivation and prevent it from dying out.
- Vyttila-11 is the latest variety to come out of Kerala Agricultural University’s field station in Vyttila.
- Vyttila-11 promises better yield of about 5 tonnes per hectare than the previous varieties, and is crossed with the Jyoti variety of rice popular in Kerala. The crop duration is about 110 days.
- About 80% of the rice paddies in the Sundarbans faced the problem of saltwater incursion and if the pokkali experiment succeeded, it would be a good step to turn around the fortunes of the farmers.
(Source: The Hindu)
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