Thanjavur: The basmati rice, known as the emperor of rice varieties, hitherto grown only in the Himalayas, has finally come to the delta district of Thanjavur, thanks to the initiatives of a young farmer.

32-year-old organic farmer, Rajarajan, has shown that good Basmati grows on the plains too.

An MCA degree holder, Rajarajan quit his job with a reputed software company in Coimbatore, due to insufficient pay and terrible working conditions, and took to agriculture. His father, Siddhar, is a noted organic farmer in the delta region.

Although the cold climate of the Himalayan foothill is ideally suited for the cultivation of Basmati rice, Rajarajan said that the weather in September suits too. He adds that he had attempted basmati cultivation only for developing seeds. “I cultivated Basmati rice in about 20 cents of land on an experimental basis. The yield was very good. I faced problems in processing the paddy as there is no processing facility here. I even approached the scientists at the Indian Institute of Crop Processing Technology (IICPT) in Thanjavur, but to no avail”, Rajarajan said.

He however added that if the processing facility is made available, Basmati can be cultivated in the delta region too.