Founder of Barendra Seed Bank Yusuf Mollah no more
Yusuf Mollah, the farmer from Rajshahi who founded Barendra Seed Bank to conserve rare and traditional varieties of paddy, died this morning.
He breathed his last at his residence in Dhubail village of Tanore upazila. He was 78 years old, reports our staff correspondent quoting Yusuf Mollah's son Golam Mostafa.
Yusuf was diagnosed with lung cancer about six months ago, Golam said adding that "around 7am today he suddenly fell sick and died."
Yusuf started collecting seeds at his home about 50 years ago to preserve the rich heritage of traditional indigenous rice varieties to prevent them from getting lost under the influence of hybrid varieties.
After the establishment of "Barendra Seed Bank' with the help of the non-governmental non-profit development organisation Bangladesh Resource Center for Indigenous Knowledge (BARCIK)m Yusuf Mollah preserved seeds of about 300 varieties of paddy with the help of farmers from different districts.
Yusuf Mollah received multiple national awards. His collected paddy is being used in various government research institutes.
Yusuf is survived by his wife, three sons and one daughter.
His namaz-e-janaza will be held this afternoon and the body will be buried at the family graveyard.
Comments