Scientists of the ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research (IIRR), Hyderabad, with the Krishi Vigyan Kendra of Madanapuram mandal in Wanaparthy district, Telangana, held an awareness and distribution programme on biofortified zinc-rich rice supplementation featuring the varieties DRR Dhan 48 and DRR Dhan 63, with district welfare officer K. Sudha Rani as chief guest.

The programme was organised by Drs C. N. Neeraja, S. V. Sai Prasad, Amtul Waris, Aravind Kumar J. and Jyothi Badri, who explained biofortification and the nutritional benefits of biofortified rice and the features of the different varieties, with particular emphasis on DRR Dhan 48 — its potential for commercial cultivation, current demand and marketing avenues — and encouraged wider adoption of zinc-rich rice.

Participants who had already used the biofortified varieties DRR Dhan 45 and DRR Dhan 48 as infant and child feed reported improvement in the height and weight of children aged three to six after supplementation with DRR Dhan 48, asked for the programme to be extended to more villages, and showed interest in DRR Dhan 63 as a further source for child-nutrition programmes.

As part of the programme 1,000 kg of milled DRR Dhan 48 and 500 kg of milled DRR Dhan 63 were distributed to 18 anganwadi centres; the rice will be used to supplement about 200 undernourished and malnourished children for roughly 90 days, with growth parameters monitored against control groups to document the effect.

The institute presents biofortified zinc-rich rice as a sustainable, food-based way to improve nutritional security and as a link between its research and community nutrition programmes run through anganwadi centres. Anganwadi teachers, supervisors, mothers and child development project officers attended.

Source: ICAR