Growth performance of rice crop in bangladesh agriculture

Abstract

Growth rates of production, acreage and yield of different varieties of rice are estimated for the period 1947-48 to 1992-93 splitted into pre and post independence periods. Total rice production and acreage grew @ 2.09 percent and 0.69 percent respectively per year over the study period. During the postindependence period growth rate of rice production was higher but that of rice acreage was lower as compared to preindependence period. Over the whole period HYV rice production grew positively @ 8.68 percent per annum and its acreage increased @ 10.96 percent per annum. But the yield of HYV rice decreased @ 1.07 percent per annum over the whole period The decline in yield rate of HYV rice may have been caused by such factors as reduction in soil fertility due to intensive crop cultivation, imbalanced use of chemical fertilizers, deficiency of micronutrients and reduction of organic residues in soil. Research on how to make agricultural production more sustainable should be given higher priority and correspondingly higher funding should be allocated to research on sustainable agriculture.