ALOR SETAR: The Muda Agricultural Development Authority (MADA) welcomes the Kedah government’s efforts to make the Sik district a hub for ‘huma’ (hill) padi cultivation in the state to serve as an alternative to the supply of local white rice.
MADA chairman Datuk Dr Ismail Salleh (pix) said the effort should be supported by all parties as it was complementary to the entire rice industry, especially in Kedah.
“Try to imagine that we have padi fields within and outside the MADA areas and there is huma rice as well, this will certainly compliment one another, meaning we don’t have to compete.
“I also want to make efforts and ensure that the cost of producing huma rice is reduced further because currently, the cost is quite high,“ he said when commenting on the state government’s efforts to target the Sik district as a hub for huma padi cultivation in the state.
He also called for more areas in the state to be identified for cultivating huma padi.
On Tuesday, Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said that the Kedah State Zakat Board (LZNK) had implemented an initiative to plant huma padi by focusing on unutilised land in the Sik district.
In another development, when asked about the actions MADA would take following public concerns about the water level in the Muda Dam reaching critical levels, Dr. Ismail stated that the water source in the dam was still sufficient.
“Actually, the statement issued by the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (JPS) regarding the status of water storage in the dam is contradictory. The Muda Dam is under MADA, so the party that should issue the statement is MADA.
“In Kedah, we have three dams, which are the Muda Dam, the Ahning Dam and the Pedu Dam. The water in the Muda Dam will support the water reservoir in the Pedu Dam and the reservoir in the Pedu Dam is still over 70 per cent so it can still last until the end of this season,“ he said.
He also expressed confidence that the water reserve at the Muda Dam would still be able to supply water until June even if there was no rain.
On April 3, the JPS in a Facebook post informed the water reserve at the Muda Dam in Sik, was at a dangerous level as of April 1, due to the current hot spell.
