ICAR signs resarch pact with ICRISAT to benefit dryland farmers

New Delhi, May 25 (UNI)Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has signed a three-year research agreement (2006-08) with Hyderabad based International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) to step up the research activities focusing on dry land areas of the country.

Signing the agreement with ICRISAT Chief Dr. William Dar here today, Dr. Mangala Rai, DG, ICAR said that this pact would benefit the dryland farmers of the country by improving productivity of rainfed crops thus benefiting India's about 84 per cent of the rural poor live in rainfed areas where food scarcity is a major problem.

The partnership between two premier research organisations of the Indian subcontinent includes both strategic and applied research. The project deals with 5 crops namely Sorghum, Pearl Millet, Chickpea, Pigeon pea and Ground nut which are grown on 38 million hectare. And, this partnership would help the country in effectively tackling the effects of drought, said Mr Rai.

The thematic areas of research are: genetic resourcesconservation, evaluation and utilization; enhancing crop productivity and sustainability under both favourable and dryland stress environments; improving system productivity and livelihood for fragile and dry environment including socio-economic and policy options, and strengthening linkage between research and development including training.

The joint projects also entail sulphur and micronutrient fertilization of crops for increasing productivity of drylands. Soil characterisation of these areas would be diagnosed and effects of improved nutrient management practises on crop productivity, crop quality and economic returns to farmers evaluated under this project.

Another project aims at promoting bio-diesel plantations, rehabilitating of degraded lands through integrated soil and water management options and establishment of bio-diesel plantations with Jatropa and Pongamia.

Adapting to climate change in semi-arid areas of the country by studying development pathways and coping mechanisms for survival would be another focus area.

Earlier, an early-maturing and wilt resistant desi (ICCC 37) and Kabuli (ICCV 2) chickpeas have been released and their adoption led to increased productivity (from 400 kg/ha in 1990 to 1200 kg/ha in 2004), leading to a nearly 10-fold increase in total production in Andhra Pradesh. Pigeonpea and groundnut varieties that were released have also been adopted by farmers in many states. Pigeonpea ICPL 88039 is becoming popular in the rice-wheat cropping systems of the Indo-Gangetic Plains for cultivation before wheat.