How Farm Ministry is controlling wheat pests

As part of its efforts to tackle pests and diseases in wheat, the Indian Council for Agricultural Research, an arm of the Agricultural Ministry, is trying to ensure that no particular variety of wheat is grown in more than 15 per cent of the total area under the cereal.

“We are growing various types of wheat in the country depending on regions and climate. You have one particular variety in Punjab, another one in Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan. This has been done to overcome the threat of diseases such as Karnal bunt or rusts or smuts,” said Indu Sharma, Project Director, Directorate of Wheat Research in Karnal, Haryana.

Wheat for paranthas Such diseases not only affect production but also exports as some countries are cautious to ensure such pathogens don’t enter their shores. For example, Iran had banned Indian wheat between 1996 and 2012 after an outbreak of Karnal bunt, a fungal disease first traced in India in 1931.

Indu Sharma was here in connection with a curtain raiser programme for the 7th International Seminar on Wheat and Wheat Products.

She was also responding to a plea from the milling industry for developing wheat to produce flour for making paranthas .

Grain from Australia According to KSK Kannan, Managing Director of Naga Ltd, the milling industry has to import the wheat from Australia to produce flour for making paranthas . Naga Ltd imports some 500-600 tonnes of wheat for this purpose.

“We have to pay a premium for this wheat. We are willing to fund research on such a variety since it can cut our costs,” Kannan said.

At one point of time, the PWP 334, propagated by World Food Prize 2014 winner Sanjaya Rajaram, was the wheat variety that was mainly grown in India. But India has come a long way to the current situation of growing many varieties.

Production This is also a strategy to achieve the target of producing 120 million tonnes of wheat by 2020.

“We should have produced 100 million tonnes of wheat this year. We had expected to reach the mark since the output has been hovering between 90 and 95 million tonnes. But untimely rains affected the crop,” Indu Sharma said.

This year, production is estimated at 95.85 million tonnes against 92.50 million tonnes last year.

Asked if production could top 100 million tonnes next year, she said it was possible provided every thinggoes right.

To a question whether El Nino would have any effect on the next year’s wheat crop, she said it was too early to make any projection. “If there is a prolonged dry period, then, we could have problem. But a majority of the area under wheat is rain-fed,” she said.

Monsoon woes The India Meteorology Department (IMD) has predicted a 70 per cent possibility of El Nino, which results in warming up of the sea surface temperature leading to drought in the Asia-Pacific region, this year. Weather experts have predicted that El Nino is likely to set in after August.

On the other hand, the monsoon, which set in almost a week late, has been slow in its progress across the country. Most parts are yet to be covered and the monsoon has become dormant. However, it is expected to reactivate next week.

Rainfall deficit Rainfall deficit during the current monsoon till June 25 was 40 per cent.

Indu Sharma also told the industry that the ICAR is willing to work with the industry to find a solution to the problems on yield or quality.

NL Mehta, Senior Vice-President, All India Bread Manufacturers Association, said India has scope to export wheat products such as rusks and cookies.

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