Hybrid Rice in Bangladesh

Farm-Level Performance
The government of Bangladesh permitted four private seed companies to import seeds of rice
hybrids for the 1998-99 boro season to make up the shortage of rice seeds after the floods
in the 1998 aman (monsoon season rice) season, since there were no locally bred rice hybrids
This paper primarily evaluates the farm-level performance of imported rice hybrids, based on
representative sample farmers who grew hybrids during the 1999 boro season. The
study findings support the view that hybrids were introduced in Bangladesh without a clear
deployment strategy and without scientific evaluation of new rice hybrids under farmers
conditions before importing seeds.
MAHABUB HOSSAIN, ALDAS JANAIAH, MUAZZAM HUSAIN

I
Background

ice is a major source of livelihood in terms of providing

food, income and employment in Bangladesh. It covers
about 77 per cent of the total cropped area in the country.
Rice production in Bangladesh remained almost stagnant in the
1950s at around 11 to 12 million tonnes (rough rice, or paddy).
But the population growth rate accelerated from less than 1 per
cent per year during the first half of the century to 2.5 per cent
during the 1950s, causing concern for Bangladeshs ability to
feed itself. The 1960s, however, experienced a rapid growth of
production due to increased cropping intensity of rice, changes
from direct seeding to transplanting method of cultivation, and
introduction of modern agricultural inputs such as chemical
fertilisers and irrigation by power pumps, promoted by the
governments grow more food programme. Rice production
grew from 12.1 million tones in 1959-60 to 16.9 million tonnes
in 1969-70, an increase of 40 per cent over a decade, of which
almost 50 per cent came from expansion of cropped area. The
potential of further growth of rice production through increase
in cultivated land and cropping intensity, however, was almost
fully exploited by the end of the 1960s.
The early 1970s was a period of stagnation because of disruptions in production and destruction of infrastructure caused
by the war of independence in 1971, and successive crop failures
caused by droughts and floods. The decline in the per capita
availability, skyrocketing rice prices in the international market
following the oil shock of 1973, and crop failures led to severe
food insecurity and famine during 1974-75 when thousands died
of starvation.
Production recovered its pre-independence peak in 1976. The
adoption of modern rice varieties began to pick up slowly because
of limited expansion of irrigation facilities and constraints in the
supply of chemical fertilisers controlled by government agencies.
With the liberalisation of markets for agricultural inputs, including small-scale irrigation equipment (shallow tubewells and
power pumps), the irrigated area began to expand rapidly in the
early 1980s, and along with it the adoption of high-yielding
varieties, and use of chemical fertilisers [Hossain 1988, Zohir
et al 2002]. From 1973 to 1986, the increase in cropped area

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June 21, 2003

decelerated sharply to 0.3 per cent per year, but production growth
was maintained at 2.2 per cent per year because of technological
progress, particularly in the dry season boro rice cultivation
[Hossain 2003].
Further policy changes were introduced in the mid-1980s with
reduced tariffs on importation of agricultural machinery, removal
of ban on imports by the private sector, and deregulation in the
prices of agricultural inputs, which gave further impetus to the
expansion of irrigation, particularly the extraction of groundwater through shallow tubewells [Hossain 1996]. The area
irrigated by tubewells increased from 0.3 million ha in 1985 to
3.3 million ha by 2001. Along with the expansion of minor
irrigation, a market for transaction of irrigation water was developed, which provided small and marginal farmers access to
irrigation. Area under modern varieties spread rapidly and reached
about two-thirds of the cropped area by 2001.
Rice production increased from 21.4 million tonnes in 198788 to nearly 36 million tonnes by 2000-01, and the yield from
2.0 t/ha to 3.4 t/ha. It can be seen from the figure that the
acceleration in yield growth took place mostly since the mid1980s, with a rapid growth over the last three years.
The expansion of cropped area (through increase in ricecropping intensity and replacement of land from non-rice crops),
which was an important source of production growth till the mid1980s, has dried up. In fact the area under rice began declining
since the mid-1980s (Table 1). The increase in domestic production is now entirely dependent on growth in rice yield. Indeed,
Bangladesh must target a higher rate of growth in yield than the
required increase in rice supplies to meet demand, in order to
release land for other crops whose demand has been growing
faster than that of rice.
Rice breeders have, therefore, been trying to evolve inputefficient and pest-resistant higher-yielding varieties (HYV) to
increase the yield while sustaining the natural resource base. One
innovation has been the development of hybrid rice varieties for
the tropics, which is expected to shift the yield potential of the
rice plant by 15-20 per cent or more. The technology has attracted
the attention of research leaders and policy-makers in many Asian
countries who see it as an opportunity to overcome the yield
ceilings reached by many enterprising farmers in the irrigated
ecosystem.

2517

Figure: Trends in Rice Area and Yield, Bangladesh (1973-2002)

Area (000 ha)

Yield(t/ha)

12000

Area
Yield
11000

10000

9000

8000
1973

1
1978

1983

1988

1993

1998

Year

Period

Area

Yield

Production

1973-86

0.39

1.78

2.17

1986-02

0.24

2.81

3.05

1973-02

0.18

2.35

2.53

for the 1998-99 boro season, in response to the recommendation

of the NSB and also to cover up the shortage of rice seeds after
the devastating floods in the 1998 aman (monsoon season rice)
season. A total of about 600 metric tonnes of seed of four hybrid
rice varieties from India and one variety from China were imported.
Among various hybrids, 75 per cent of total imported seed was
of the Alok-6201 from India followed by Sonar Bangla, a
Chinese hybrid. It is estimated from the seed sales data that about
23,700 ha of area was planted with the hybrid rice in the 1998-99
boro season.
Another recent development was the release of a new hybrid
variety known as Jagaron-1 (GB-4). For this, scientists from
BRAC, the largest NGO in Bangladesh, worked on a hybrid rice
variety for three years with parent line taken from China. Its yield
is found to be about 20 per cent higher than that of local HYV
varieties, and it has a relatively shorter duration (110-120 days).
GB-4 was approved for release in 2002.
Concern was voiced on how the imported rice hybrids would
perform in the farmers fields during the 1999 boro season
the first year/season of introduction as they were developed
outside the country, but were tested at limited locations in
Table 1: Compound Growth Rates in Area, Production
and Yield of Rice (1950-51 to 1998-99)
(Per cent per annum)

I
Current Status of Hybrid Rice R and D
Hybrid rice research was initiated at the Bangladesh Rice
Research Institute (BRRI) in 1983 but only for academic purposes. In 1993, a few female parental lines (CMS lines) and
experimental rice hybrids from the International Rice Research
Institute (IRRI) were evaluated at BRRI research farms but in
an unorganised way. Systematic efforts were initiated only in
1996 with financial support from the Bangladesh Agricultural
Research Council (BARC). However, the hybrid rice programme
did not appear to be a high priority at BRRI till recently as is
evident from the allocation of meagre human and financial
resources.1 So far five rice hybrids have been identified, of which
two are found to be promising and are in the process of being
released.2 These two hybrid combinations are: (i) IR 68025 A x
BR 827 (140-145 days duration like BR 28, a check inbred
variety), and (ii) IR 68025A x IR 21 567 R (duration: 150-155
days like BR 29 a check). These hybrids were tested in five
locations during the 1998-99 boro (dry season irrigated rice)
season. The hybrids out-yielded the check varieties (BR-varieties) in three of the five locations.
Meanwhile, the new seed policy of the Bangladesh government
encouraged the private sector to participate in the rice seed
market. Since the research system in Bangladesh had not yet
developed appropriate hybrids for the country, the government
encouraged private sector companies to import hybrid rice seeds
and try them with farmers. Some private seed companies imported
rice hybrids and evaluated them through on-farm trials in nine
locations, one in each region during 1997-98 boro season. A
special evaluation committee was formed under the Seed Certification Agency of the National Seed Board (NSB) to evaluate
the results of these on-farm trials. This special committee recommended the release/introduction/import of seeds of rice
hybrids, although based on the results of limited trials only for
one season. The Bangladesh government permitted four private
seed companies to import 2,200 metric tonnes of hybrid rice seed

2518

Year
1950-51 to 1969-70
(Pre-green rev period)
1973-74 to 1985-86
(Early green rev period)
1985-86 to 2001-02
(Late green rev period)

Area

Yield

Production

1.08***

1.41***

2.50***

0.39***

1.78***

2.17***

0.24

2.81***

3.05***

Notes: Trend growth rates have been computed by fitting semi-log functions
(lnY = a+bt) to the data. *** denote the statistical significance at 1 per
cent probability level. The period 1970-71 to 1972-73 has been excluded
from the analysis due abnormal production situations caused by the
civilwarandtherehabilitationofthedisplacedpopulation.
Source: BBS published and unpublished reports.

Table 2: Distribution of the Sampling Area and Number

of Sample Farmers According to Farm Size
District/
Region

No of Villages
Included in Clusters

Bogra
Mymensingh
Jamalpur*
Comilla
Habigonj
Jessore
Total

Note:

Large

6
11
9
10
13
16
65

No of Farm Households
Medium
Small

9
9
9
4
14
9
54

12
11
12
14
10
9
68

9
9
8
12
6
7
51

All
30
29
29
30
30
25
173

* Some villages from adjoining Sherpur district were also included in

the sample in this region.

Table 3: Extent of Area Allocated for Hybrid and HYV Rice

in Sample Farms by Farm Size (1998-99 Boro)
Farm Size
Group

Average
Farm
Size
(ha)

Functionallylandless
(<0.2 ha)
Small farmers (0.2-1 ha)
Medium farmers (1-2 ha)
Large farmers (>2 ha)
Allfarmers

Gross
Area
Cropped
under
Area* Boro Rice
(ha)
(ha)

0.09
0.64
1.32
4.26
1.52

0.66
1.28
1.80
4.76
2.08

0.29
0.49
0.78
2.70
1.01

Per Cent Area

under Boro Rice
Hybrid
HYV

36
24
22
19
25

64
76
78
81
75

Note: *Includes rented/leased in land.

Economic and Political Weekly

June 21, 2003

Bangladesh only for one crop season. This paper primarily evaluates
the farm-level performance of the imported rice hybrids based
on the representative sample farmers who grew hybrids during
the 1999 boro season.

III
Database and Sampling
Primary data for two selected hybrid rice varieties, namely,
Alok-6201 and Sonar Bangla CNSGC-6 at the farmer level have
been collected through a household survey. Data on marketing
aspects have also been collected from farmers, selected millers
and marketing intermediaries. Secondary data related to the yield
performance of hybrid rice at research stations and on-farm trials
have been collected from BRRI, Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC), Department of Agricultural
Extension (DAE) and Agricultural Advisory Service (AAS), an
NGO.

Sampling Framework
Considering the diversity in rice production environments
across Bangladesh and also main sources of hybrid rice seeds,
six districts representing each of the six major regions were
selected for the farm household survey. Three clusters of
neighbouring villages were selected from each district to draw
samples of households. Out of 10 samples from each cluster,
three large, four medium and three small farmers were selected.
The total targeted sample size was 6 x 3 x 10=180 farm households. However, in the Jessore region, due to non-availability
of adequate number of hybrid rice adopters, 26 instead of 30
samples were selected. To facilitate comparative analysis, three
more samples were dropped since these farmers did not grow
any inbred varieties (conventional HYVs) along with the hybrid
variety. Thus, the number of samples for which data were analysed
was 173.
Of these, 108 farmers were adopters of hybrid rice variety Alok6201 and 65 were adopters of Sonar Bangla. As mentioned earlier,
all the 173 sample farmers grew hybrid rice along with inbred
rice varieties during the 1999 boro season so a paired test of
the performance of hybrids relative to inbred varieties was
conducted for better comparative analysis.
The farm household survey was conducted with the help of
a structured questionnaire, which was pre-tested before finalising
it. There were both closed and open-ended questions. The latter
were usually used for collecting data on the perception of farmers
on certain qualitative aspects of hybrid rice adoption. A second
questionnaire was used to obtain data on marketing and related
aspects from sample traders and millers. Nineteen traders and
the same number of millers were interviewed for collecting
marketing data.

Analytical Tools
Farm-level data generated through household survey were
processed using an integrated analytical framework. We compared the performance of hybrids and conventional HYVs (inbreds)
grown by the same sample farmer. Thus, paired-t test was used
to test the significance in the differences between hybrids and
HYVs since same farmer grew both rice varieties under the same
production environment in the same season. The pairing of the

Economic and Political Weekly

June 21, 2003

observations helped dissociate the effect of the variation due to

the agro-ecological difference of the farm and the socio-economic
characteristics of the farmer.
A standard Tobit model as specified by Tobin (1958) was
attempted to estimate adoption function for hybrid rice. Usually,
the estimation of adoption function is more desirable for any
technology only if the farmers are well experienced and well
aware of the technology. Therefore, farmers would express their
preferences thereby affecting the adoption level of an innovation.
Hybrid rice is still new to Bangladesh and the present study was
undertaken during the first year of hybrid rice introduction.
However, preliminary information from the Tobit model in this
study indicates factors influencing the probability of hybrid rice
adoption.

IV
Results from Farm-Level Performance
Extent of hybrid rice adoption: The two hybrid varieties
cultivated by the sample farmers were Alok-6201 and Sonar
Bangla (CNSGC-6). One hundred and eight farmers cultivated
Alok, while 65 sample farmers grew Sonar Bangla. Small
farmers have allocated a higher share of their cropped area for
hybrid rice cultivation than larger farmers (Table 3). However
on average, the sample farmers have allocated a higher
proportion of their land for inbred varieties (75 per cent) than
for hybrids (25 per cent). This was expected since the period
of study comprised the first year of hybrid rice introduction in
Bangladesh.
Table 4: Regression Results of Tobit-Model Estimates
for Adoption of Hybrid Rice
Variable

Hybrids
Coefficient

Constant
Age
Education
Land own
Seed source
Farm size
Land type
R2

Standard Error

83.91***
0.273E-01
0.233*
1.323
1.131
-1.806***
-1.814**
0.83

3.529
0.534E-01
0.121
1.409
1.029
0.316
1.044

Notes: *, ** and *** indicate significance 10 per cent, 5 per cent and 1 per cent
probabilitylevelsrespectively.

Table 5: Mean Yields of Hybrids and HYVs of Rice on Sample

Farms (1998-99 Boro Season)
Name of Rice hybrid

Hybrids

HYVs

Alok-6201 (n=108)
Sonar Bangla (n=65)
Both hybrids (n=173)

5.84
7.50
6.46

5.58
5.71
5.63

Per Cent Difference

4.7
(1.62)
31.4*** (6.05)
4.74*** (5.24)

Note: Figures in parentheses are estimated paired-t values.

Table 6: Mean Yield Levels of Hybrids and HYVs of Rice

by Farm Size on Sample Farms
Farm Size
Hybrids
Functionallylandless
Small
Medium
Large
Allsizes

5.91
6.39
6.35
6.45
6.46

Mean Yield (t/ha)

HYVs
Per Cent Difference
4.96
5.85
5.74
5.53
5.63

19.15***
9.23**
10.63*
16.64**
14.74***

(3.86)
(2.32)
(1.94)
(2.41)
(5.24)

Note: Figures in parentheses are estimated paired-t values.

2519

Farmers were not aware of the performance of hybrid rice till

the 1999 boro season. Thus, the sample farmers had little preference to express on hybrid rice in terms of area allocation.
Therefore, the application of the Tobit model to study adoption
behaviour of farmers has limited relevance. Nevertheless, we
made an attempt to estimate the Tobit model using several
combinations of farm and farmer-specific variables. Finally, we
included the following variables: (a) age (years) (b) education
(number of years of schooling); (c) land own (land ownership
dummy, 1 if it owned, 0 otherwise; (d) seed source; 1 if
source of seed for sample farmer is public sector and BRAC
(NGO), 0 otherwise (e) farm size, gross cropped area (ha); and
(f) land type (1 if it is upland, 0 otherwise). Proportion of
rice area under hybrid rice during boro 1998-99 was taken as
a dependent variable. The results are summarised in Table 4.
Results show that the education level of farmers had a significantly positive relationship with the probability of extending
more area under hybrid rice in Bangladesh. Further, farm size
has shown a significant negative association with the adoption
of hybrid rice. It implied that small farmers who make up about
80 per cent of all farmers are the potential adopters of hybrid
rice in future in Bangladesh. The possible reason for this is that
the primary objective of small farmers, whose average farm size
is very small, is to enhance household rice production from a
small piece of land to feed their families. Therefore, they would
go for hybrid rice technology since its yield is 15-20 per cent
higher than that of HYVs. Further it was found that hybrid rice
is potentially more suitable for lowland areas, as shown by the
negative relationship between land type and hybrid rice adoption
(Table 4).
Yield performance: The relative yield performances of the rice
varieties (hybrids and HYVs) are presented in Table 5. Overall,
rice hybrid Sonar Bangla performed better with an average yield
of 7.50 tonnes per hectare than Alok-6201 whose yield was 5.84
t/ha; yield of HYV was 5.63 t/ha. Among various farm size
groups, large farmers obtained the highest yield while the functionally landless had the lowest yield for hybrids (Table 6). On
average, the yield gain of hybrids over HYVs was 15 per cent,
which is close to yield gains reported from China [He et al 1987]
and India [Janaiah and Hossain 2000].
District/regionwise yield levels for hybrid and inbred varieties
(Table 7) indicate that the performance of Sonar Bangla was more
impressive in Jamalpur while it was poor in Comilla. The yield
levels of Alok-6201 varied from 5.05 t/ha in Mymensingh to 6.86
t/ha in Comilla.
A comparative picture of yield performances of hybrids and
HYVs of rice at farmer level (sample farmers), research farms
(BRRI farms) and on-farm trials (BADC, Department of Agriculture Extension or DAE and AAS) is also presented in Table 8.
The results of the recent study by the Agricultural Advisory
Services (AAS) may be considered as results of on-farm trials
since they included only those farmers, 33 from 10 districts, who
strictly adhered to the recommended management practice for
the hybrid and HYV cultivars. Generally, the yield performance
of Sonar Bangla was impressive on sample farms, research farms
and on-farm trials (Table 8). However, the yield of Alok-6201
is quite impressive in DAE on-farm trials. The data on DAE farms
appear to be somewhat unreliable in view of Alok-6201 performance in other farms. In some areas the yield of Alok-6201 is
unusually high, for example, in Dhaka 11.40 t/ha, Comilla
10.5 t/ha and in Jhikargacha 12.8 t/ha, which have raised the

2520

Table 7: Districtwise Yield Performances of Different Rice

Varieties of Sample Farmers
District/Region

Alok-6201

RiceVarieties
Sonar Bangla

HYVs

5.58
5.05
*
6.86
6.06

5.81

8.79
6.11

6.67
7.48

6.17
4.88
5.83
6.39
4.83
5.66
5.63

Bogra
Mymensingh
Jamalpur
Comilla
Habigonj
Jessore
Average-All

Note: * One Alok-6201 producer from Jamalpur was included in this sample
whose yield rate was 7.90 t/ha.

Table 8: Mean Yield of Hybrids and HYVs of Rice on Sample

Farms, Research Farms and On-Farm Trials
Variety
Alok-6201
Sonar Bangla
HYV

Sample Research Farms

On-Farm Trials
Farms
BRRIa
BADCb
DAE c
AAS d
5.81
(3.2)
7.48
(32.9)
5.63

5.27
(3.1)
6.72
(25.7)
5.112

7.291

5.22
(18.6)
5.47
(24.3)
4.393

6.06
(-3.2)
7.55
(20.6)
6.264

Notes: Figures in parentheses are per cent yield gains of hybrid over HYVs.
1 For control plots the average yield recorded was 5.34 t/ha,
2 For BR-28 only.
3 For BR-28, BR-29, BR-26, BR-16 and BR-14.
4 For BR-29 only.
Sources: a, b, c, d reports of respective organisations.

Table 9: Input Use Pattern for Cultivation of Alok-6201, Sonar

Bangla and HYV Rice by Sample Farmers
Inputs

Alok
H Y V S Bangla H Y V AllHybrids All HYVs
(n=108) (n=108) (n=65) (n=65) (n=173) (n=173)

Seed (kg/ha)
11.5
Organic manure
(t/ha)
3.0
Chemical
a
fertiliser (kg/ha) 392.7
Irrigation(noof
applications)
13.4
Pesticides
(no of sprays)
2.1
Labour (days/ha) 126.0

44.9

11.4

54.4

11.5

48.5

1.9

5.7

3.1

4.0

2.3

363.1

662.0

570.6

494.0

439.7

12.9

24.8

24.6

17.7

17.3

1.2
118.6

2.2
126.0

1.6
126.0

2.1
126.0

1.3
121.0

Note: a Includes urea, DAP; MOP and other fertiliser applied.

Table 10: Cost of Inputs for Hybrid and HYVs of Rice

by Sample Farmers
(Tk/ha)
Input

Alok
H Y V S Bangla H Y V AllHybrids All HYVs
(n=108) (n=108) (n=65) (n=65) (n=173) (n=173)

Seed

2323
(10.7)
A Organic manure 1043
B Chemical
fertiliser
3149
Sub-total (A+B)
4192
(19.2)
Irrigation
3975
(18.2)
Pesticides
1582
(7.3)
Labour
7946
(36.4)
Machinery use
1629
forcultivation
(7.5)
Miscellaneous
157
(0.7)

545
(3.2)
614

2445
(9.3)
1377

635
(2.9)
748

2369
(10.1)
1169

579
(3.0)
664

2442
3056
(17.8)
3518
(20.4)
883
(5.1)
7503
(43.6)
1609
(9.3)
96
(0.6)

5465
6842
(26.1)
6173
(23.6)
1393
(5.3)
7121
(27.2)
2171
(8.3)
40
(0.2)

4543
5291
(23.7)
6151
(27.6)
941
(4.2)
7090
(31.8)
2164
(9.7)
22
(0.10)

4019
5188
(22.1)
4801
(20.5)
1510
(6.4)
7636
(32.6)
1833
(7.8)
114
(0.5)

3232
3896
(20.4)
4507
(23.6)
905
(4.7)
7348
(38.4)
1818
(9.5)
68
(0.4)

Totalcost

17210

26187

22294

23451

19121

21804

Note: Figures in parentheses indicate percentages to total cost.

1 US Dollar = About Tk 56 during 1999.

Economic and Political Weekly

June 21, 2003

average figures. DAE figures for control plot yield was 5.34 t/
ha. The yield rates of HYVs varied from 4.39 t/ha on BADC
farm to 6.26 t/ha under AAS on-farm trials.
Input use levels: Table 9 summarises the average amount of inputs
used for the cultivation of hybrids and inbreds. For better comparative analysis, inputs use pattern is furnished separately for
Alok-6201 and Sonar Bangla hybrids along with their respective
HYVs. Seed rate (kg/ha) was significantly lower for the hybrid
than for HYVs because hybrids required only one or two seedlings
per hill for transplanting. Organic manure used for hybrids was
nearly 71 per cent higher than that for HYVs while chemical
fertiliser was only 12 per cent higher than that for HYVs (Table 9).
Manure and fertiliser use was much higher for Sonar Bangla than
Alok-6201. Even those HYV cultivators who grew Sonar Bangla
used much more manure and fertiliser than those who cultivated
Alok-6201 along with HYVs. The number of pesticides sprays
was much higher for hybrid varieties than HYVs indicating
more sensitivity of hybrids to biotic stresses. But labour use and
irrigation were almost the same for the hybrid Alok-6201 and
the inbred varieties.
The total cost of inputs was about 23 per cent higher for hybrids
than for HYVs (Table 10). The total cost of cultivation of Sonar
Bangla and Alok-6201 were Tk 26,187 and Tk 21,804 respectively. Input costs for HYVs of farmers who grew Sonar Bangla
were 30 per cent higher than those for Alok-6201 adopters.
Hybrid rice cultivation in India was also found to be 19 per cent
costlier than inbred varieties [Janaiah and Hossain 2000]. The
largest difference in cost items between the hybrids and the
inbreds was on account of seeds. The seed accounted for only
3 per cent of total cost for HYVs while for Alok 6201, it was
10.7 per cent and for Sonar Bangla, it was 9.3 per cent of total
cost (Table 10). The total seed cost for hybrid varieties was nearly
four times that for HYVs. This was due to the large difference
in seed prices of hybrid and inbred rices although the seed rate
for the hybrids were substantially lower. The average prices of
Alok-6201 and Sonar Bangla hybrid seeds were Tk 200 and Tk
210 per kg respectively, while it was only Tk 10 per kg for seeds
of various inbred HYVs.
Profitability: The profitability of any technology is the ultimate
factor that determines the long run sustainability of its adoption
by farmers in any country such as Bangladesh. The details of
the costs and returns for hybrids and HYVs are shown in Table 11.
The highest grain price was registered for Sonar Bangla followed
by Alok-6201 and HYVs. Note that in most cases the market
price for hybrid grain was provided by the sample farmers based
on their own perception but not the actual price received for the
produce in the market.

Total returns were also highest for Sonar Bangla and lowest
for HYVs. Net return was highest for Sonar Bangla and lowest
for Alok-6201. Sonar Bangla was about 48 per cent more profitable than HYVs due to (a) higher yield gain (31.4 per cent), and
(b) less additional cost (17.5 per cent). On the other hand, Alok
6201 was 12 per cent less profitable than HYV because of less
yield gain (only 5 per cent) and higher additional input cost (27
per cent). Combining the costs and returns of both the hybrid
varieties together, production of hybrid has been relatively more
profitable, but the difference is not statistically significant
(Table 11).
Timeliness of farm operations: Time-tuning of key farm operations such as seeding, transplantation, weeding, fertiliser application, plant protection, irrigation, harvesting and threshing is
very important for the exploitation of available yield potential
of hybrids. Our study indicates that a majority of the sample
farmers performed these farm operations on time. However,
8-10 per cent of the farmers who grew Alok-6201 delayed
transplantation by 1-3 weeks and the irrigation schedule was also
delayed by 1-3 weeks. Therefore, the delay in transplantation and
irrigation might be a key factor behind the low level of yield
gains of Alok-6201 growers compared with Sonar Bangla, whose
farmers followed all key farm operations on time besides using
higher levels of inputs. Thus, hybrids may be considered knowledge and management-intensive and also input-responsive.
Perception of hybrid rice: Eighty five per cent of the sample
farmers said they had consumed hybrid rice grain during the 1999
post-boro season. Of those who used hybrid rice grain for
consumption, 75 per cent felt hybrid rice is not suitable for their
taste. Many respondents said hybrid rice has high stickiness of
cooked rice, poor keeping quality and taste. The analysis of
consumer preferences would obviously have useful implications
on hybrid rice research and development strategy. Future research
on hybrid rice development should therefore focus on improvement of grain quality besides yield and pest resistance in the nextgeneration hybrids.
Eighty-two per cent of Sonar Bangla adopters and only 40 per
cent of Alok-6201 adopters expressed their intention to continue
cultivating the hybrid variety expecting better yields and profits
in future and also expecting better new hybrids with good grain
quality. Further, small and marginal farmers have shown more
interest in continuing hybrid rice cultivation, primarily to increase
rice production at the household level from a small piece of
holding.
According to those who are not willing to continue hybrid rice
cultivation, high cost of seed, requirement of more crop care and
management time, less yield gains, high pest and disease attack,

Table 11: Economic Returns to Hybrid and HYV Rice Cultivation for Sample Farmers
Item

Alok
(n=108)

HYV
(n=108)

Yield(t/ha)

5.81

5.53

Market price (Tk/tonnes)

6198

5965

*Gross return (Tk/ha)

37971

3558

Totalcost(Tk/ha)

21805

17211

Net return (Tk/ha)

16166

18347

Per Cent
Difference
5.1*
(1.62)
3.9***
(3.63)
6.8**
(1.92)
26.7***
(10.49)
-11.9*
(1.72)

S Bangla
(n=65)

HYV
(n=65)

Per Cent
Difference

Both Hybrid
(n=173)

Both HYV
(n=173)

7.48

5.71

6.44

5.63

6458

6358

6296

6113

50447

38670

42659

36727

26187

22294

23451

19121

24260

16376

31.3
(6.05)
1.6*
(1.70)
30.5***
(6.43)
17.5***
(7.56)
48.1***
(4.13)

19207

17606

Per Cent
Difference
14.4***
(5.24)
3.0***
(3.08)
16.2***
(5.51)
22.6***
(12.99)
9.1
(1.44)

Note: * Includes straw value. Bracketed figures are pair-t values.

Economic and Political Weekly

June 21, 2003

2521

low profits, and lack of suitability for home consumption are

the major reasons for discontinuance. Among other reasons
mentioned by Alok-6201 adopters were high grain shedding,
lodging of the plant, formation of sterile/chaffy grains, low headrice recovery after milling and poor grain quality. Thus, relatively
more Alok-6201 farmers were not in favour of continuing hybrid
rice than Sonar Bangla farmers.

V
Summing Up
A critical assessment of farmers experiences with hybrid rice
adoption during 1998-99 boro broadly indicates that hybrid rice
has higher yield potential in farmers fields but is facing a mix
of problems which are hindering large-scale adoption of this
technology. On average, the yield gain of hybrids over HYVs
was 15 per cent. Sonar Bangla out-yielded by 31 per cent while
it was only 5 per cent in case of Alok-6201. It was found that
Sonar Bangla was about 48 per cent more profitable than HYVs
due to higher yield gain (31.4 per cent) and less additional cost
(17.5 per cent). On the other hand, Alok-6201 was 12 per cent
less profitable than HYV because of lower yield gain (only 5
per cent) and higher additional input cost (27 per cent). Higher
seed cost, additional plant protection and more fertiliser use were
the major sources of higher input cost of about 17 per cent for
hybrid rice cultivation.
Major constraints in hybrid rice adoption were identified; these
were high cost of seed, requirement of more crop care and
management time, less yield gains, high pest and disease attack,
low profits and lack of suitability for home consumption.
Our findings support the view that hybrids were introduced
indiscriminately during the 1998-99 boro season without a clear
deployment strategy. Some of these problems would have been
avoided if rice hybrids were introduced to Bangladesh after
scientific on-farm testing for 2-3 seasons/years across agroecological regions.
Implications: Major implications arising from our findings are
as follows: (a) High-quality local hybrid rice varieties suitable
for Bangladesh should be developed, (b) Domestic seed production should be expedited, (c) Hybrids suitable for rain-fed environment and resistant to biotic stresses ought to be developed,
(d) Suitable crop management strategy needed for hybrid rice
production, (e) Research infrastructure should be strengthened
for evolving suitable hybrid rice varieties in the country, (f) New
hybrid varieties should be scientifically tested in farmers fields
across the regions for at least 2-3 years before releasing/introducing them while granting import permission to introduce rice
hybrids, unlike the procedure followed in the 1998-99 boro
season. (g) The price of hybrid seeds needs to be rationalised
and regulated and at the same time, the domestic seed industry
should be promoted which would have a favourable impact on
the reduction of seed cost and reduced insecurity of seed supply.
This would also provide employment opportunities for the rural
poor, especially for rural women. To facilitate development of
the domestic seed industry, necessary provision should be made
for training and input support to seed growers and to promote
integrated credit and extension services to growers, (h) Coordination between the public sector and the NGO/private sector
in research and extension should also be strengthened at all levels.
It may be concluded that hybrid rice is higher yielding by 15
per cent, which may help improve household food security of

2522

resource-poor small and marginal farmers in Bangladesh, if

farmer-consumer acceptable rice hybrids are developed. At the
same time, refinement of current hybrids and development of
a strong domestic seed industry ought to be prerequisites for longterm sustainability of hybrid rice adoption. -29
Address for correspondence:
M.Hossain@cgiar.org / ajaiah@igidr.ac.in

Notes
1 Only two breeders were working as full time scientists on hybrid rice
at BRRI during 1999-2000. Resources from BRRI core budget for hybrid
rice R and D were too meagre to carry out extensive research activities
until 2000.
2 Among five promising rice hybrids identified at BRRI one was released
in 2001.

References
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Agricultural Development Corporation, Dhaka.
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Economic and Political Weekly

June 21, 2003