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Rice in BangladeshRice is the staple food of about 135 million people of Bangladesh. It provides nearly 48% of rural employment, about two-third of total calorie supply and about one-half of the total protein intake of an average person in the country. Rice sector contributes one-half of the agricultural GDP and one-sixth of the national income in Bangladesh. more...
Total rice production in Bangladesh was about 10.59 million tons in the year 1971 when the country's population was only about 70.88 millions. However, the country is now producing about 25.0 million tons to feed her 135 million people. This indicates that the growth of rice production was much faster than the growth of population. This increased rice production has been possible largely due to the adoption of modern rice varieties on around 66% of the rice land which contributes to about 73% of the country's total rice production. However, there is no reason to be complacent. The population of Bangladesh is still growing by two million every year and may increase by another 30 millions over the next 20 years. Thus, Bangladesh will require about 27.26 million tons of rice for the year 2020. During this time total rice area will also shrink to 10.28 million hectares. Rice yield therefore, needs to be increased from the present 2.74 to 3.74 t/ha. To combat the future situation we will need to consider:
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