Andhra Pradesh government releases three new rice varieties

Nellore: The state government has released three new rice (paddy) varieties developed by the Agriculture Research Station, Nellore. Of these three varieties, two are highly suitable for organic farming. Nellore Sugandha (NLR 40054) got an overwhelming response from the farmers with its aromatic, short duration, and high yielding. The other two are Nellore Siri (NLR 4001) and Dhanyasree (NLR 3354).

Agriculture scientists say, the farmers have been accustomed to the traditional varieties and are not showing interest to cultivate the new ones on experimental basis due to fear of losses.

The Agriculture Research Station, Nellore, developed NLR 40054 which is medium duration, high yielding, and with good quality. The aromatic nature of the variety attracted many farmers across the country under various climatic conditions and had already started cultivating it.

All India Coordinated Research Improvement Project (AICRIP), a wing of Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR), has tested its efficiency in various parts of the country. It is in the third place in all India ranking, scientists say. Now, the aromatic variety is being grown in 500 hectares in Nellore, Prakasam, Kadapa and Guntur districts.

Further, Nellore Siri (NLR 4001) and Dhanyasree (NLR 3354) are also a big hit with farmers of AP, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka.

"Nellore Sugandha and Nellore Siri are suitable even for organic farming. They need only 80 kg of nitrogen per hectare as against 120 kg per hectare when compared to other varieties. Nellore Sugandha variety is a cross between Nellore Swarnamukhi (NLR 145) and Vajram (MTU 5249) which is on par with most sought after variety BPT 5204," said Principal Scientist Dr P Ramesh Babu. The popular Sugandha variety is attracting farmers of Krishna, Guntur, East and West Godavari districts.