The Hiranmayee variety of paddy crop. Telegraph pictures

Bhubaneswar, May 20: Rice breeders from Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) have decided to promote a campaign against female foeticide by naming several rice varieties, developed by the university, after girls.

The scientists have given feminine names to seven varieties, released between 2008 and 2012, and all the names were chosen from a poem titled Atmaja, written by Sarojini Sarangi, a leading poet and gynaecologist from Cuttack.

“Rice breeders generally name their new varieties after their kin. But, our team decided to name several varieties after girls. All the names were adopted from Sarojini’s poem Atmaja. While Manaswini was released in 2008, Mandakini, Tejaswini and Mrinalini were released in 2010 and this year in January, Hiranmayee, Jyotirmayee and Tanmayee were released,” said Satya Ranjan Das, honorary professor at the OUAT rice research station.

Showing two varieties currently cultivated for sample seeds at the university farm, Das said while Hiranmayee is a variety with 130 days of yielding time, Jyotirmayee is an early variety with 100 days of yielding period. Das and his colleague rice breeder, Debendranath Bastia, developed the seven rice varieties.

Regarding the experience at the State Variety Release Committee in January, Das said that when principal secretary, agriculture, Rangalal Jamuda heard the story behind the naming and again listened to the poem, he was happy that such an innovative idea has been taken up.

Poet and gynaecologist Sarojini Sarangi

Sarojini, too, was happy to know that the names, chosen from Atmaja, were used for a social cause.

“The poem was written during 1997-98, but around 2000 I came across an advertisement regarding a campaign against female foeticide. I sent a proposal to the health and family welfare ministry with three scripts in English, Hindi and Odia and all were accepted. The next year I also received an award from the health minister at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. Later, the poem was made into a documentary that was released in 13 Indian languages and screened at 60,000 locations across the country, apart from receiving an award at International Film Festival, New York,” said Sarojini.

In 2002, the poem Atmaja was selected as an entry from Odisha and she went to recite it at the All-India Poets’ Conference in Jaipur on behalf of the All India Radio, Cuttack.

“Girls are like flowers, and as a responsible society, we must allow them to bloom and prosper. However, as on many occasions because of various stigmas the society tires to ignore this, any form of awareness to promote the causes for the girl child is a welcome step. Others should also try to follow this,” said Sarojini.