Bihar Agriculture University in Sabour. Telegraph picture

Bhagalpur, Jan. 3: The scientists of Bihar Agriculture University (BAU) have readied a gift for farmers in the deluge-hit districts of eastern Bihar — paddy seeds that do not rot in flooded fields.

The scientists would soon provide three varieties of the seeds to the farmers.

The university had decided to work on the new varieties keeping in mind the huge damage that the farmers faced in the past few years because of floods. The new seeds would be able to endure waterlogging on the fields and produce high yield.

M.L. Choudhary, the vice-chancellor of Bihar Agriculture University, said the scientists have successfully conducted experiments on the three varieties of seeds — Baidahi, Sudha and Satyam — in the flood-hit areas and produced 30 quintals of paddy on a hectare of land. The experiment was done in areas where floods were an annual problem.

“The paddy plants grown from these seeds were not damaged despite being under the floodwater,” he told The Telegraph.

Choudhary said the paddy seeds, which were prepared by the scientists for the first time in 2011, have been used on an experimental basis. “We had cultivated paddy plants from the seeds in our farmhouse and other areas that are flooded by the Ganga. In fact, even after floodwater receded from the areas, parts of these fields continued to be submerged. But the crops did not rot. It was a successful mission,” he added.

Senior scientist and the head of the department of the university’s paddy and plant reproduction department P.K. Singh said: “BAU has prepared huge quantities of seeds. We would soon distribute them among the farmers.”

He told The Telegraph that the university’s aim was to start the distribution from February. “We will start giving the seeds to them from the end of February and may extend the programme till March. Once the farmers get the seeds, they can start sowing from April and May. If that is done, the farmers can reap the harvest by November,” Singh said.

“During the time of floods or even when the fields are submerged, the paddy would continue to grow with the rise in the water level,” he added.

Public relations officer at the university Rajesh Kumar said the new verities of paddy seeds would turn out to be useful for the farmers in the flood-prone areas of the region.

“With the introduction of the new varieties of seeds, the farmers of the flood-hit areas in the eastern part of the state and the Kosi region would not have to face the recurring crop damage. Instead, the seeds would ensure high productivity,” he said.

On learning the development of the new varieties of seeds, the farmers hopes that the next harvest season might ring in some good news for them. “We have been facing floods every year and our crops are destroyed. We have heard about the new variety of paddy seeds prepared by the BAU scientists. We hope that the seeds will help us fight the vagaries of nature,” said Bindo Das, a paddy farmer at Kahalgaon, said.