New Delhi, December 19
India is conducting further trials on Aghonibora, a rice variety that can be eaten merely after soaking in water for around 40 minutes, to find how this economical and environment-friendly rice variety grown in Assam fares in other climate conditions.
Minister of State for Agriculture KV Thomas yesterday told the Rajya Sabha that parboiled form of rice variety called Aghonibora, developed by the Regional Agriculture Research Station at Titabor in Assam, had been found fit to eat by soaking in normal water for about 40 minutes without boiling or steaming.
In response to a query by K Malaisamy of the AIADMK on the positive and negative effects of this new variety, Thomas said Aghonibora shows no loss of nutrients during cooking.
However, the variety is not yet being promoted for the public distribution system, as the farmers grow only a small quantity of this variety. “It is not being procured for the central pool for distribution under the Targeted Public Distribution System,” he said.
Experts say that field trails are being conducted on this magic ready-to-eat rice variety, adding that there is not much difference between the instant Aghonibora rice grain and other rice varieties grown in India. Yellowish in colour, it has a similar grain length and breadth. Each grain is 7.65 per cent protein-rich, just like other rice varieties.
Incidentally, Aghonibora has been named Aghoni, meaning months of November and December, when it is harvested. It was being grown in Assam for quite some time and now the Central Rice Research Institute has decided to test the feasibility of growing it in other climatic conditions like hot and humid climate of Orissa, where some preliminary tests have shown encouraging results.
The magic lies in the extremely low amylose, a starch that gives rice its hardness, content of Aghonibora. The low amylose content makes Aghonibora grains soft and gives it the unique quality of ready-to-eat, just after soaking in water for 45 minutes at room temperature. When the water is lukewarm, it takes around 15 minutes.
Experiments have shown that Aghonibora does not need extra expenditure or special care. The yield, too, is higher, around 4.5 tonne per hectare, more than the average 2.2 tonne per hectare of other rice varieties.
