Bhawanipatna/Kesinga: At a time when climate change induced irregular rainfall and drought have taken a toll on agriculture, cultivation of a high-yielding variety of black gram has stirred hopes among farmers in Bhawanipatna, a report said.
The cultivation of a new variety of black gram has resulted in a bumper harvest for the farmers in this district. Farmers had initially raised doubts on the yield of this new variety as the saplings witnessed a huge growth and the duration of cultivation was very long.
However, proving the skeptics wrong, the farmers reaped a good harvest from the cultivation.
Farmers in Phatkamal, Boria Burlupada, Nagpula and Kinerkela villages reaped a good harvest from the cultivation. Agriculture officials also participated in harvesting the new variety at some places on an experimental basis which threw off astounding results. Reports said that a harvest of 3.72 quintal per acre was reaped in Phatkamal while it was four quintal in Boria.
Reports said that the cultivation of this new variety of black gram has been taken up under National Food Security Mission (Pulses) by Kesinga agriculture department which has planned for its cultivation over 100 hectare of land.
The new variety known as RU-03-14 has been developed by Indira Gandhi Agriculture University in Chhattisgarh. The Odisha Seeds Corporation received the seeds from National Seeds Corporation and distributed them among 200 local farmers.
The farmers, after receiving the seeds, sowed it on their farmland in between August 10 to September 20. Agriculture officials also distributed necessary kits, micro fertilizers and pesticides free of cost to the farmers.
Block agriculture officer Janaki Ballav Mohapatra, field agriculture officials and Krushak Sathis were present during the harvest. When contacted, Mohapatra said that this new variety has become a success and farmers in the area will also cultivate this variety in next year.
The duration of this cultivation is slightly longer but those farmers who applied manure, micro-fertilizers, pesticides properly and de-weeded their farmland have been able to earn Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000 from the cultivation of this new variety of black gram, he added.
Notably, the market price of black gram stands at Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 per quintal this year.
PNN