Kathmandu, May 6 :

The fever of loktantra has swept the country. Keeping with the new rage, the National Seed Board (NSB) has released Loktantra, Ram and Mithila, new varieties of rice suitable for different climatic conditions.

While Loktantra was released day before yesterday, Ram and Mithila were released yesterday. The National Rice Research Programme has developed the new varieties after years of research.

A study on all three varieties was conducted in farmers’ fields and also at the Agriculture Research Station. The varieties were recommended following a meeting of the Variety Approval, Release and Registration Sub-committee of the NSB, held in Lalitpur yesterday and the day before.

According to NARC, Loktantra is suitable for Terai, inner Terai and the lower belt of the mid-hills up to an altitude of 900 metres. Loktantra is blight-resistant, resistant to Bacterial Leaf Blight and also draught tolerant. The rice grains are tastier too.

Ram is appropriate for both irrigated and non-irrigated land in Makwanpur, Chitwan and Nawalparasi.