For productivity enhancement, the ICAR released 104 new improved varieties / hybrids for different agro-climatic regions which include an early-maturing basmati rice variety, Pusa Punjab Basmati 1509 with moderate resistance to leaf blast and brown spot diseases; a late sowing wheat variety HD 3059; and the large seeded (>30g/100 seeds) kabuli chickpea variety, CSJK 6, moderately resistant to root rot and tolerant to wilt, ICAR said in a press release.
During the year, 11,835 tonnes of breeder seeds, 14,984 tonnes of foundation seeds, 22,281 tonnes of certified seeds, 14,939 tonnes of truthfully labeled seeds and 5,237 tonnes of quality planting material were also produced for distribution among stakeholders.
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In horticultural crops, Arka Rakshak - a tomato variety resistant to bacterial wilt, TLC V and Alternaria (yielding over 90 tonnes/hectare) were released. The first variety of makhana (Euryale ferox Salisb.) named Swarna Vaidehi (production potential of 2.8-3.0 tonnes/hectare) and a new red-skinned advance potato hybrid 2001P-55 (potential yield of 300-350 quintals/hectare) moderately resistant to late blight suitable for eastern plains of Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Odisha and Jharkhand, were also released.
AgrInnovate India Ltd., the registered company owned by the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) and Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) is working towards promotion and commercialisation of ICAR tech- nologies, and licensed the technology of tissue culture of oil palm and related know-how for commercialisation.
US-based soil fertility maps (macro, secondary and micronutrients) were prepared for 20 districts in 2013, totalling 170 districts across 21 states to ensure site specific balance fertilisation and thereby improving soil health and crop productivity in the country. Atlas on Vulnerability of Indian Agriculture to Climate Change and established Model Climate Smart Village in 100 most vulnerable districts was also developed.
To augment the availability of FMD (foot and mouth disease) vaccine, Agrinnovate has initiated the establishment of a modern vaccine production plant with a capacity for 100-150 million doses in the public-private partnership (PPP) mode at the Bangalore campus of the Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar. The company is also assisting DARE on projects related to establishment of facilities for soil, water and tissue testing, seed production and demonstration, ICAR said in a statement.
The National Agricultural Innovation Project (NAIP), made satisfactory progress in enhancing the competence of NARS towards steering the agriculture R&D and introducing pragmatic pluralism. About 91 public-private partnerships were established in 203 NAIP supported sub-projects, including three with GEF support. New 51 rural industries were piloted and over 3,800 hectare area of farmers' agricultural land brought under sustainable land management practices.
According to ICAR, the monsoon-driven Indian agriculture witnessed 106 per cent of long-term average rainfall during the cropping season 2013 that enabled 105 million hectare of total area sown during kharif 2013 as compared to about 100 million hectare during 2012. The first advance estimates target foodgrain production of 259 million tonnes and a growth rate of over 5 per cent for agriculture and allied sectors in 2013-14.
Meanwhile, Uttarakhand, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were struck by natural calamities of different, but severe intensities. The ICAR prepared doable and location-specific action plans of agriculture and allied sectors for rehabilitation and restoration of the affected areas through technological backstopping.
The ICAR demonstrated climate resilient technologies in 100 most-vulnerable districts under NICRA. The ICAR has also prepared the climatic vulnerability atlas of the country and district level contingency plans to enable farmers to choose appropriate means and methods for mitigating the climatic variability in different agro-climatic regions.