Sugarcane Breeding Institute (SBI) here has been awarded the prestigious 'Sardar Patel Outstanding Institution Award' for the year 2013, instituted by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented the award, carrying Rs 10 lakh cash and a citation, to N V Nair, Director of the Institute during ICAR Foundation Day held in Delhi on July 29, for the the best performing Institute of ICAR for its contribution to agricultural research, Nair said in a release.
One of the oldest Institutes under ICAR-fold with a history of over 100 years, SBI had been in the forefront of sugarcane research in India.
The varieties developed by it are being cultivated throughout the country and also in many Asian and African countries, the release said.
The most popular sugarcane variety in tropical India and cultivated in more than 1.2 million hectares, Co-86032, was developed by the Institute and occupies nearly 90 per cent of the area in Tamil Nadu and was responsible for improved cane production in the state, it said.
The other varieties from the Institute like Co-89003, Co-0238 and Co-118 have predominant position in north India. The Institute maintains the largest germplasm collection of sugarcane in the world.
The Institute is also into bio-fuel research and has developed energy canes suited for bio-fuel applications and has one regional centre at Karnal in Haryana and two research centres in Kannur and Agali in Kerala to take care of the specific research needs, Nair said in the release.
