Source: Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India

ICAR has identified 7 new varieties of wheat and 1 variety of barley for release suitable to various agro-climatic conditions in the country. India is currently the second largest producer of wheat in the world after China.

HI 1531 wheat variety is the first early maturing semi-dwarf bread wheat variety ever evolved in the history of drought tolerance breeding in Central India. It has been recommended for rainfed and restricted irrigation conditions of Central Zone. Developed by IARI Regional Station, Indore, this variety gives an average yield of 25 quintals/hectare under rainfed condition while under restricted irrigation it is 27 q/h. Having superior yield potential and resistantce to leaf rust over available commercial varieties, HI 1531 would improve the wheat productivity and profitability under limited input conditions, in Central Zone, by ensuring early arrival of best quality chapatti wheat in the market.

DBW 16 wheat variety, developed by Directorate of Wheat Research (DWR), Karnal, is resistant to yellow and brown rusts and amenable to late and very late sowings. It is better in resistance to leaf blight as compared to all the existing varieties and has been identified for North Western Plains Zone (NWPZ), which contributes to about 40% of the total wheat production of the country. It matures in 120 days with an average yield of 39 q/ha.

HD 2888 wheat variety, developed by IARI, New Delhi, is tolerant to drought/moisture stress as it has yielded highest over all checks and qualifying varieties under rainfed conditions. The variety has been identified for North Eastern Plain Zone. It carries a high degree of resistance to stem rust and moderate degree of resistance to leaf blight, which occurs in this region. The average yield is 23 q/ha and has high extraction rate (flour recovery) without disturbing the quality of wheat and micronutrient content.

For Peninsular Zone- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and plains of Tamil Nadu- NIAW 917 and PBW 533 varieties have been identified. While NAIW 917 is superior in yield (average yield 43 q/ha), disease resistance and quality, PBW 533 is resistant to both stem and leaf rust with average yield of 37 q/ha. PBW 533, developed by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, has excellent chapatti quality and very good bread and biscuit quality.

AKDW 2997-16 wheat variety has also been recommended for Peninsular Zone under rainfed condition. Developed by Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, this variety is expected to solve the problem of limited choice among farmers to have high yielding, good quality variety which will lead to enhanced productivity. DDK 1025 Dicoccum variety also has been recommended for this region since the average yield is of 38 q/ha along with disease resistance to stem and leaf rust.

In barley RD 2660 variety has been identified for North Western Plain Zone. It is superior in yield and disease resistance as compared to the check varieties. The average yield is 27 q/ha.

Courtesy : Times of India, dated 24th September, 2005
For more information connect : www.icar.org.in