Nuclear techniques for food and nutritional security in Bangladesh

Dr Md. Abdul Malek  :
Achieving food and nutritional security is a prerequisite for building a food and hunger-free Bangladesh. After independence, facing a lot of challenges the highest success has been achieved in Bangladesh agriculture. After the Golden Jubilee of independence, the production of agriculture has been increased to feed the population of the country which has been increased 2.5 times. Agricultural scientists are the main contributors in achieving this grand success. The specialized agricultural research institute Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) together with other government research institutes and private organizations have already developed so many early maturing and climate resilient high-yielding crop varieties which have opened up new horizons of the country’s economy.
Origin of BINA, a specialized agricultural research institute

The application of nuclear energy in agricultural research of the country started in 1961 at the Atomic Energy Agricultural Research Center (AEARC), Dhaka under the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission. The Center was established in July 1972 as the Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (INA) as a subsidiary institution of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission. In 1975, it was shifted from Dhaka to the present Bangladesh Agricultural University Campus at Mymensingh. INA was separated from BAEC on 1 July 1982 and recognized as an independent autonomous research institute under the Ministry of Agriculture as Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA). By issuing Ordinance No-2 of 1984, BINA was declared as a national institute of Bangladesh.
The research activities of BINA are being conducting with the focus on ensuring a sustainable and productive agricultural system by developing climate resilient crop varieties; ensuring modern soil and water management; improved quality and increased crop production through the development of appropriate management techniques and appropriate disease and insect-pest management.
In crop improvement program, it is possible to create such genetic variations through the special nuclear techniques like mutation breeding in crops that did not exist earlier in nature. Mutation breeding takes less time in developing crop varieties than the conventional. It is also possible to obtain gene(s) for desired traits by editing gene(s) of the respective heritable gene(s) through genome editing using mutation breeding.

A total of 128 varieties of 19 crops have been developed by BINA from its establishment to date. It is mentionable that among 128 crop varieties 99 are mutant varieties which have been developed through the peaceful use of nuclear technique i. e., mutation breeding. Most of the mutant varieties are contributing in food and nutritional security.
Besides varietal development BINA has so far developed 11 bio-fertilizers of 10 legume crops and 150 advanced crop management-based technologies. BINA is continuing its research activities in achieving food and nutritional security facing changing climate. About 100 mutants and advanced lines are in pipeline of different crops having desirable traits of which selected some will be registered/released as varieties in near future.

Notable and extendable crop varieties developed through nuclear techniques
Early maturing Aman varieties for facing starvation
During the month of Kartik, in several northern districts of the country, the farmer would have no work and no food including fodder for livestock, which was called Manga (starvation). To face this Manga, BINA developed early maturing (110-115 days) and high-yielding (average 4.8 t/ha) Binadhan-7 in 2007 which is suitable to harvest from October to middle of November (mid-Ashwin to Kartik). Farmers of those districts have already been able to overcome Manga cultivating Binadhan-7.
Exportable Boro rice with long and slender grain
Although Bangladesh ranked third in rice production in the world, there is a lack of exportable premium quality rice varieties with long-slender grains. BINA has recently developed a premium quality Boro rice variety BINA dhan25 with long-slender grains. Due to having high yield (average 7.6 t/ha), early maturity (138-145 days) and long-slender grains this variety has already received a positive response. In near future Bangladesh will be able to export this rice.

Early maturing Boro varieties
High-yielding with early maturing varieties are very much useful to produce more crops from the same land in a year. BINA has developed three early maturing (120-145 days) high yielding (average grain yield of 6.2-7.6 t/ha) Binadhan-14, Binadhan-24 and BINA dhan25. Due to early maturity these varieties are being grown successfully in profitable T. Aman – mustard – Boro cropping pattern.
Post-flood agricultural rehabilitation
It is often not possible to plant seedlings on time due to floods in flood-prone areas during mid-July to August. To solve this problem, BINA has developed late planting potential T. Aman Binashail. Though planting in late September it gives satisfactory grain yield (3.5-4.0 t/ha).
Bringing fallow lands of saline areas under cultivation
In Boro season the southern saline belt, rice cultivation is seriously disrupted due to high salinity in agricultural lands caused by intrusion of saline sea-water due to floods and cyclones, and capillary flow of saline ground saline water. BINA has developed one salt salt tolerant wheat like Binagam-1, three rapeseed (Binasarisha-4, Binasrisha-9, BINA sarisha12 with average seed yield of 1.4-1.8 t/ha), four groundnut (Binachinbadam-6, Binachinbadam-7, Binachinbadam-8 and Binachinbadam-9 with average seed yield of 1.8-1.9 t/ha), two sesame (Binatil-2 and Binatil-4 with seed yield of 1.1-1.2 t/ha), four soybean (Binasoybean-2, Binasoybean-6, Binasoybean-5 and BINA soybean7 with average seed yield of 1.8-2.2 t/ha) varieties are now popular to the farmers of saline areas resulted in the improvement of their socio-economic conditions.

Contribution to increasing cropping intensity
Now it is very much important to cultivate two crops instead of one, three instead of two, and four instead of three per year on the same land. It is mentionable that there are about 2.20 million hectares of land are under Boro – T. Aman – Fallow cropping pattern. To bringing three crops instead of two in this cropping pattern, BINA has developed high-yielding and early maturing T. Aman varieties like Binadhan-7, Binadhan-22 and BINA dhan26 (grain yield: 4.8-6.1 t/ha). After harvesting these early T. Aman, early maturing high-yielding rapeseed varieties Binasarisha-4, Binasarisha-9, Binasarisha-11 and BINA sarisha12 (seed yield: 1.6-2.0 t/ha) are easily grown and after harvesting rapeseed Boro rice Binadhan-24 and BINA dhan25 and late planting potential but early Binadhan-14 are growing without yield loss. As a result, farmers are easily accommodating three crops in cropping pattern instead of existing two. Moreover, intensive research is being carried out in various regions of the country to develop four-crop based cropping pattern like T. Aman – mustard – Boro – T. Aus, T. Aman – mustard – sesame – Aus, T. Aman – mustard – summer mungbean – T. Aus, T. Aman – mustard – jute vegetable – Aus and has been successful in many cases using BINA varieties.
–to be continued
[The writer is Director (Research), Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture, Mymensingh].