Punjab still leads the nation in wheat yield per hectare

Ludhiana, Oct 22 (UNI) Punjab continues to lead the country in per hectare yield of wheat.

Among the top ten wheat producing states, Punjab is at the top with a yield of 4179 kg per hectare, followed by Haryana 2847 kg per hectare. Rajasthan 2761 kg per hectare, West Bengal 2283 kg per hectare, Jammu and Kashmir 1790 kg per hectare and Madhya Pradesh 1613 kg per hectare.

The contribution of Punjab to the central pool has also risen in the last few years.According to Punjab Agricultural University's (PAU) senior wheat breeder, Dr G S Dhindsa the share of Punjab has gone up from 55 per cent in 2004-05 to 61 per cent in 2005-06.

The national buffer stock of wheat depends on production in Punjab and Haryana. The share from Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh--the two other major wheat growing states, is sub-optimal.

Dr Dhindsa said the country expected over 34.85 million tonnes of cereals valued at over Rs 30.313 crore from 2001 to 2005 of which wheat and rice are the main exports.

Plant Breeders at PAU are of the opinion that Punjab agriculture is beset with several problems and wheat producivity has shown a decline over the last five years. The major cause for this has been the ''climate change, primarily increase in temperature''.

In the department of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Biotechnology, genetic manipulations are being done to develop plant material suitable for changing climatic conditions.

As a result of the research being carried out, a new bread wheat variety PBW-527 has been released to the farmers. It possess resistance to stripe rust, has high grain yield with good 'chapatti' making qualities and is suited to rainfed conditions.

Durum PBW 291, another new variety has also been developed having high degree of resistance to rusts, loose smut and 'karnal', apart from giving high grain yield. The variety is also good for making bread.

Another new bread wheat variety, PB-533 has been identified for release in entire peninsular zone of north India and it is sown late and has a good yield.

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