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Promoting Summer Onion Variety - Biplob at Meherpur

The Meherpur Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) organized a field day program showcasing the Summer Onion – Biplob at Sadar, Meherpur on November 25th, 2023. As part of the summer onion extension program, DAE conducted demonstrations of suitable onion varieties in potential districts across the country, with Biplob being one of the featured varieties. Biplob, an exceptional onion variety, has shown remarkable potential. Recognizing this potential, ACI Seed has partnered with East-West Seed International, a multinational company, to promote the summer onion variety in Bangladesh and initiate trial marketing of the variety.

Biplob is ideally cultivated from April to September and exhibits a high tolerance to temperature and rainfall. It boasts very low disease pressure and wide adaptability, offering a superior yield advantage of 30-32 MT/Hectare with a crop duration of approximately 100 days after transplanting. The germination percentage of the seed exceeds 90%, and the variety's bulb shape is a flat globe with a pink rose color, averaging 70-100 gm in weight, with over 90% of bulbs being single bulbs. Additionally, the bolting percentage is less than 5%, and the variety's pungency ranges from medium to high, with a storage capacity of 2-3 months.

The field day program was graced by the presence of esteemed guests, including Ms. Wahida Akter, Honorable Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Bangladesh, who attended as the Chief Guest. Mr. Badol Chandra Biswas, Director General of DAE, was present as a Special Guest, and the program was presided over by him. Special Guest Mr. Abdul Samad, DC, Meherpur, and Mr. Bijoy Krishna Halder, DD, DAE, Meherpur, also participated in the program. The Chief Guest emphasized the importance of off-season onion cultivation and advised DAE to promote potential varieties to increase onion production in the country. The demonstration farmers expressed their satisfaction with the excellent results of Biplob, achieving more than 3 Mond onions per decimal in their land. The participating farmers and retailers were eager to witness the performance and gain key insights about Biplob during the program.