Producers and promoters of hybrid seeds have urged farmers to use ultra-modern Chinese agricultural technologies in order to harvest bumper crops and make Pakistan self-sufficient in food supplies.
In a statement on Thursday, Pakistan Hi-Tech Hybrid Seed Association Chairman Shahzad Ali Malik said cultivators must acquaint themselves with new technologies like mechanised direct seeding of rice (DSR), which would save 50% of water and up to 37% of labour cost.
He emphasised that DSR technology was technically and economically feasible and an ecofriendly alternative to the conventional puddled transplanted rice.
He said the development of new rice varieties for direct seeding along with proper management practices could help in the adoption of DSR.
He was of the view that the seed priming technology could help to get rid of the problem of poor establishment of crop and could be further improved.
Pakistan is among the top 10 producers of rice in the world and contributes around 8% to the world
rice trade.
However, he feared that unavailability of water and electricity at the required time would affect the rice production target of 8.6 million tons set by the Federal Committee on Agriculture.
Malik urged rice growers to cultivate the best-quality, hi-tech hybrid seeds for better yield and export of the commodity.
He pointed out that China imported around 601.57 tons of different varieties of rice worth $255.52 million from Pakistan in the first quarter of last fiscal year.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 15th, 2022.
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