The Hindu Business Line : ICAR identifies barley, 7 wheat strains for various regions

THE Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has identified seven new varieties of wheat and one barley strain for release in various agro-climatic conditions in the country. They include drought and disease resistant varieties, along with high yielding features.

Recommended for rain-fed and restricted irrigation conditions of the Central Zone, HI 1531 is the first early maturing semi-dwarf bread wheat variety, said IARI. The variety is developed by IARI Regional Station, Indore. It gives an average yield of 25 quintals/hectare (q/h) under rainfed conditions and 27 q/h under restricted irrigation. It is resistant to leaf rust compared to other commercial varieties. HI 1531 will improve the wheat productivity in the Central Zone by ensuring the early arrival of best quality chapatti wheat in the market, it said.

Directorate of Wheat Research (DWR), Karnal has developed DBW 16, which is resistant to yellow and brown rusts and amenable to late and very late sowings. It offers better resistance to leaf blight as compared to other varieties and has been identified for North Western Plains Zone (NWPZ).

HD 2888 wheat, developed by IARI, New Delhi, is tolerant to drought and has been identified for the North-Eastern Plain Zone. It is highly resistant to stem rust and moderately resistant to leaf blight, which occurs in this region. For the Peninsular Zone — Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and plains of Tamil Nadu — NIAW 917 and PBW 533 have been identified. While NIAW 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 an average yield of 37 q/ha. AKDW 2997-16 wheat has also been recommended for Peninsular Zone under rainfed conditions.

For 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 with an average yield to 27 q/h.

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