Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) on Tuesday observed its 50th anniversary celebration, marking 50 years since it was established as an autonomous agricultural research institution.
BARI Director General Md Manjurul Kadir inaugurated the celebration by cutting a cake at BARI headquarters in the presence of scientists, officers, staff and workers, said a press release.
BARI, the country’s largest multi-crop research institute, conducts research and development on 212 crops, including cereals, tubers, pulses, oilseeds, vegetables, fruits and flowers, to support food and nutrition security, increase agricultural production, raise farmers’ incomes and create employment, the press release said.
According to the institute, its scientists have developed 1,373 technologies, including 681 high-yielding crop varieties, hybrids, disease-resistant and stress-tolerant varieties, and 692 other production technologies. BARI said these innovations have significantly increased the country’s production of oilseeds, pulses, potatoes, vegetables, spices and fruits.
The press release said that the late President Ziaur Rahman established the institute as a full-fledged autonomous institution through Presidential Ordinance No. 62 on 4 August, 1976, strengthening the institutional foundation of agricultural research in Bangladesh.
Training and Communication Director Reshma Sultana, Research Director Faruk Ahmed, Horticulture Research Centre Director Kawsar Uddin Ahammad, Tuber Crops Research Center Director Nirmal Kumar Dutta, Planning and Evaluation Director Habib Mohammad Naser, and Service and Supply Director Md Mosharraf Hossain Molla also attended the event, along with scientists, officers, staff and workers from BARI’s centres and divisions.
