Speaking at a program on policy dialogue meeting on ´Managing rice landscapes in marginal uplands for household security and environment sustainability´ on Sunday, Bhola Man Singh Basnet, a rice expert, said the government initiate a mission to raise rice production to lessen the impact of growing food scarcity in the country as rice holds the first position among cereal crops. "We are producing rice worth more than Rs 67 billion annually.
Any adverse impact on rice production will bring huge setback to contribution of agriculture to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Research on and production of rice should be given top priority," Basnet said.
Shankar Panday, secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MoAC), urged agriculture scientists to disseminate and apply new technologies in rice production to larger scale to ensure food security in the coming days.
Dr Hari Dahal, spokesperson for the MoAC, underlined the necessity to formulate a national rice policy to boost its production.
Hari Gurung of International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) explained the vicious cycle of food productivity, insecurity, intensive cultivation and land degradation in upland areas. Noel Magor of IRRI emphasized on maintaining environmental sustainability while applying new research technologies in agriculture.
Bishnu Adhikari , site co-coordinator of National Rice Research Project (NRRP) at Sundar Bazar, explained a validated technology applied in uplands in Lamjung, Tahahu and Gorkha districts with the assistance of IRRI and International Fund for Agriculture and Development. Similarly, Ram Baran Yadav, site coordinator of NRRP in Hardinath, presented the achievements of the project which is in its fourth years.
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