Expansion of disease resistant potato farming stressed

BSS, Rajshahi :
Agricultural scientists and researchers have underscored the need for expansion of cultivation of late blight disease resistant potato to get better production to meet up its gradually increasing demand.
Due to the adverse impact of climate change farming of different cash crops like potato is being infested with various diseases including late blight. So, promotion of innovated varieties and other technologies has become the demand of time to boost the cropping yield.
They came with the observation while addressing a farmers’ field day styled ‘Dissemination of Late Blight Resistant Potato Variety and Farm Level Seed Potato Production’ at Baliaghati village under Puthiya Upazila of the district on Saturday afternoon.
Regional Wheat Research Station (RWRS) and On Farm Research Division (OFRD) of Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI) organised the event for expanding the programme at the farmers’ level in association with International Potato Centre (CIP).
Additional Director of Department of Agriculture Extension Fazlur Rahman attended and addressed the discussion as chief guest with Dr Ilias Hossain, Principal Scientific Officer of RWRS, in the chair.
District Agriculture Training Officer Shamsul Haque, IPC Field Coordinator Monwar Hossain and OFRD Scientific Officer Zahidul Islam also spoke.
Taking part in the discussion, some farmers shared their farming experience of late blight resistant BARI-46 variety potato in the area.
They told the visiting agricultural scientists and extension officials they are cultivating the variety without spraying pesticides. Its farming cost is lower by Taka 2,000 per every 33 decimals than other traditional varieties and got 35 tonnes yield rate per hectare this time.
In his remarks, Dr. Ilias Hossain said BARI has been expanding cultivation of its evolved late blight disease resistant BARI-46 and BARI-53 varieties of potato at the farmers’ levels in the country including the Rajshahi zone.
During his speech, Monwar Hossain said cultivation of these varieties are highly profitable and growing plants of these potato are resistant to various diseases like late blight and rotting and yield rates are higher than the other varieties.
Chief Guest Fazlur Rahman urged upon the attending farmers to bring more lands under the developed varieties to boost the potato production during the years to come.
He also called upon the researchers and scientists for innovating more disease resistant crop varieties and adopting newer technologies to increase food yield through reducing use of chemical pesticides to keep environment clean.