2 paddy varieties gain popularity

Mangaluru: Two paddy varieties — Sahyadri Panchamukhi and Sahyadri Kempu Mukhti — are gaining popularity among farmers. These parboiled rice varieties were developed by Keladi Shivappa Nayaka University of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Shivamogga.
Dr Naveen Kumar BT, scientist-agronomy, ICAR-Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Mangaluru said Panchamukhi was introduced in 2020 with frontline demonstration teams.
The Panchamukhi variety is well-known as flood and insect-resistant. It is doing very well in the district. In the past two years, it has reached 1,150 farmers and is currently cultivated on about 80-90 hectares of paddy land. Initially, the variety was introduced at Delanthabettu and Kayyur, which were affected by heavy floods, and also at Harekala and Moodushedde.
Another variety, Sahyadri Kempu Mukhti, was introduced this year in the district. “It has been adopted by 10 farmers and is grown on about 10 acres of paddy land. The paddy is ready to harvest in a few days,” said Naveen.
On extending the paddy cultivation area with Panchamukhi and Kempu Mukthi varieties, Naveen said farmers themselves are producing seeds. The produced seeds are further distributed to other farmers.
“The particular paddy varieties will cover more land in the coming years as the seed distribution increases. Both Pachamukhi and Kempu Mukthi varieties are gaining popularity in the region,” said Naveen. Both varieties produce up to 25 quintals of paddy per acre. The varieties will be ready within 135 days for harvesting.
Popular varieties
Paddy is cultivated in about 12,200 hectares of agricultural land in the district. The most popular varieties are MO4 or Bhadra variety, and the indigenous variety Kajejaya covers close to 10,000 hectares. It is estimated that close to 300 hectares of paddy land were inundated by the flood for a long time, creating an unfavourable situation for paddy cultivation and resulting in low production in DK.
The farmers have adopted the new variety express that is profitable. Shibaroor farmer Dayananda Kulal said he has grown the Sahyadri Panchamukhi variety on his 12 acres of land. “I received a yield of 28 quintals per acre,” he added.