Chinese seeds, machines boon for Bangladeshi farmers' rice output

STORY: Chinese seeds, machines boon for Bangladeshi farmers' rice output DATELINE: Feb. 25, 2023 LENGTH: 0:01:11 LOCATION: Dhaka CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of farmlands 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Bengali): BADAL ISLAM, Farmer 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Bengali): MD ASIR UDDIN, Farmer 4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Bengali): SAHIRUL ISLAM, Representative of the seed supplier National AgriCare Group STORYLINE: Chinese seeds and machines help Bangladeshi farmers increase rice production and gain more profits. Chinese seed giant Chongqing Zhong Yi exports 2,600 tonnes of seeds of high-yielding Chinese rice varieties to Asia and Africa each year. Of the total, around 1,500 tonnes go to Bangladesh where the "Janakraj" strain is the most popular with its high yield, high resistance to pests, and high quality. SOUNDBITE 1 (Bengali): BADAL ISLAM, Farmer "We have grown the Chinese rice with good yield, and we have benefited from the good yield. This is why we are cultivating the Chinese rice again and again." SOUNDBITE 2 (Bengali): MD A

Battling "monga" -- Chinese rice hybrids filling Bangladeshi bellies

STORY: Battling "monga" -- Chinese rice hybrids filling Bangladeshi bellies DATELINE: June 3, 2022 LENGTH: 00:02:30 LOCATION: Dhaka CATEGORY: AGRICULTURE SHOTLIST: 1. various of farming in Bangladesh 2. SOUNDBITE (Bengali): JOYNAL ABEDIN, Farmer 3. SOUNDBITE (Bengali): ALHAJ RAFIQUL, Farmer 4. SOUNDBITE (English): LING JIAHU, Chongqing Zhongyi Seed Co., Ltd STORYLINE: "Monga" is a Bengali term farmers use for the eternal annual cycle of poverty and plenty. When the season is right, there is plenty for all. When things are tough, everyone suffers. Joynal Abedin, a farmer in Nilphamari district, some 360 km northwest of Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, had been living under the shadow of monga for more than 50 years. Today, the monga cycle is not entirely broken, but the hardships of agrarian communities in northern Bangladesh have been greatly alleviated by high-yielding Chinese rice varieties. SOUNDBITE (Bengali): JOYNAL ABEDIN, Farmer "I've planted National AgriCare hybrid Dhan-4. It gives me an excellent r