The Hindu Business Line : Hybrid maize may trigger `Yellow Revolution' in Gujarat

After cotton, it is the turn of white maize. Gujarat, which witnessed the "White Revolution" with a rise in milk production four decades ago, is now on the threshold of a "Yellow Revolution". With the harvest scheduled later this month of the now-ready first crop of new, high-yielding hybrid seeds provided by Monsanto, Gujarat is poised to witness hybrid varieties being introduced in over four lakh hectares under the `desi' variety of white maize after the current kharif season.

There is a danger, however. If and when this is achieved, the original genome of the desi variety in this State will be lost forever. Gujarat's total cultivable area is 212 lakh acres, out of the geographic area of 464 lakh acresIts key crops are corn, cotton and bajra. Gujarat produces only six per cent of India's maize. Corn acreage is more than four lakh acres, with 2.5 lakh acres under the `desi' variety, also known as Open Pollinated Variety (OPV). More than 60 per cent farmers use OPV seeds, while only 15 per cent of hybrid maize farmers use Monsanto's Dekalb hybrid seeds, Mr Somnath Ghatak, Regional Manager, Monsanto India Ltd (MIL), told Business Line here.

After tasting success in Bhilwada, Chittor and Udaipur districts of Rajasthan and Sabarkantha in Gujarat, Monsanto introduced its strains in the tribal districts of Dahod and Panchmahals when sowing began around June 25 this year. The two districts account for 3.50 lakh acres of farming, 80 per cent of which is under desi corn. "We have introduced the hybrid variety in over 80 per cent of corn area in Sabarkantha district in the last 5-7 years. Now we think we can convert and hybridise 80 per cent of the desi corn area in these two districts as well, in the next three years or so," said Mr Ghatak.

In the Panchmahals district, Monsanto is benefited by the fact that 70 per cent farmers already use other hybrid varieties of maize in seven talukas. In the neighbouring Dahod district, however, almost cent per cent area under corn is under white maize variety. Most of these farmers live below the poverty line (BPL) and use maize flour as a staple diet. The new yield is likely to encourage them to sell the entire product at higher prices which, in turn, would change their consumption levels and food habits.

Monsanto has a bank of 11 Dekalb hybrid seeds, of which two varieties-Dekalb Prabal and Dekalb Hishell-have been introduced in the two districts having nearly 1,500 villages with semi-irrigation facilities.

- A third variety, Dekalb Super-900M, used in fully irrigated areas, will be inducted when the farmers "mature in agronomic practices."

Dekalb Advantage Programme

Dekalb is a hybrid maize variety that gives superior yield with large cylindrical cobs, more rows and more grain per row. It is highly responsive to inputs, said to be disease-resistant and has a 'proven' high-potential yield. Under the pilot project, called Dekalb Advantage Programme, 20 villages were selected in each of the districts in which around 8,000 acres under white maize, mainly held by nearly 1,500 small farmers, was brought under new seeds. The average land-holding of these farmers is not more than two bighas. The yield of half of this is used for domestic consumption and the other half for trade and other activities.

Impact on farmers

Mr Purushottam H Patel, a small farmer of Dholaria village under Khanpur taluka, and others said white maize has been a staple diet of the local people for generations. But its yield and its price have both been low. Now, the new variety is expected to yield Rs.3,000 per bigha (Rs.5,500 per acre) as net gain after deducting the price of seeds. He said earlier he was sowing 10 to 12 kg of desi seed per bigha. Now he would need only five kg of Dekalb seed, priced currently at Rs.500 per bigha.

"I have grown this yellow variety for the first time. The sweetness of its corn is amazing. I hope to get a good price in the market, too." He said the yield of the new seed has been two-and-a-half times and he and other farmers have decided to stick to Dekalb now.

Maize production

The maize production in Gujarat, with its desi variety, is now 800 kg per acre, which is expected to increase as the Yellow Revolution unfolds. The market price of Rs 600 to Rs 650 per quintal is also increasing. Apart from consumption as local staple diet, maize is also used as an industrial raw material and in poultry and starch products. Monsanto, Mr Ghatak said, is also talking to end-users and starch companies on behalf of cultivators to create a synergy between farm and industry. It has already tied up with the Ahmedabad-based Anil Starch Ltd for buying up maize in bulk from farmers and looking into the marketing aspect. This company needs 300 metric tonnes of maize every day. The local farmers had sold 3,000 MT to it in 2006, he said.

India ranks fifth in the acreage of corn, an important cereal crop, after the USA, China, Brazil and Mexico. In per acre productivity, however, India is low with just 0.8 metric tonnes per acre (MT/ac), as against the world average of 1.6 MT/ac. According to Monsanto, India needs to double its corn production in the next 10 years to meet the growing domestic demand from poultry, feed and starch sectors.

More Stories on : Foodgrains | Cultivation | Gujarat

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