volume 26, no. 1 january - march, 2015 · situ decomposition of crop residue in pearl...

CONTENTS

VOLUME 26, No. 1 JANUARY - MARCH, 2015

EDITORIAL COMMITTEEDr. N.P. Singh ChairmanDr. P.S. Basu MemberDr. G.P. Dixit MemberDr. Hemant Kumar MemberDr. G.K. Sujayanand MemberMr. D. Upadhyaya Member Secretary

Dr. S. Ayyappan,Secretary, DARE and DG,ICAR visited the IIPR onFebruary 22, 2015 andinteracted with all staff andprominent pulse growers of theregion. A scientists-farmersinteraction meeting was alsoorganized on this occasion. Inhis address, whilecongratulating scientists andfarmers for achieving the featof highest pulse production in thecountry, he expressed concern aboutthe decreasing area and factorproductivity and stressed upon theneed of developing photo-thermoinsensitive and early maturing varietiesto meet the challenges of climateadversities. Earlier, Dr. N.P. Singh,Director, IIPR, welcomed the DirectorGeneral and invited farmers, andapprised them about Institute’s R&Dactivities including development of newhigh yielding varieties and advancementin inf rastructure at the Insti tuteincluding Regional Stations at Dharwadand Bhopal.

Dr. Ayyappan visited the NewCampus as well as the main researchfarm of the Institute and saw differentexperimental trials, breeder seedproduction plots, seed processingfacilities and different laboratories of theInstitute. He suggested several actionpoints such as development of newgenetic material through wide

hybridization, use of embryo rescuetechnique and identification of suitablegenotypes with multiple biotic andabiotic stress tolerance and diseaseresistance, and use of plant growthregulators and microbial consortia formanagement of abiotic stresses inpulses. He suggested that the P useefficiency in chickpea should beworked out precisely usingradioisotopes. He advised for faster insitu decomposition of crop residue inpearl millet-chickpea system and theneed of precise phenotyping for stresstolerance. He expressed satisfactionover the utilization of seed processingplant.

Dr. Ayyappan interactedindividually with the staff, scientists andpulse growing farmers. Duringinteractive session, farmers apprisedthe DG about the efforts made by IIPRin transferring the technologies andestablishment of seed societies atvillage level. Dr. Ayyappan appreciated

Director General, ICAR visited IIPRNe ws 2-5 Dr. Panjab Singh visited IIPR Workshop on IPR Protection Held Microbiologists' Meet Held Training on PPV and FRA Organised National Science Day Celebrated Research Advisory Committee Meeting IMC Meeting Training on Seed Production Organized Dr. G.P. Dixit Joins as PC AICRP on Chickpea Dr. N.P. Singh AwardedResearch Highlights 5-9 Compounds Enhancing Seed Germination

and Vigour in Kabuli Chickpea Elite Mesorhizobium for Enhancing BNF in

Chickpea New Sources of Resistance against

Powdery Mildew in Rajmash Enhancing SMBC and SMBP with Pulses

Residues Screening for HPR against Gram Pod Borer Expression of Bt Protein Varies in Leaves

and Flowers Allelic Variants of Two Drought

Responsive Factors (Drfs) in Pigeonpea First Report of Stem rot in Pigeonpea Phytate and Tannins in Mungbean Variation in SCMR in Fieldpea Enhancing RUE in Rice-Urdbean in

Southern India Weed Shift under Tillage and Pulse Based

Cropping System Changing Pulse Price Scenario in Major

States of India Nematode Egg Parasitic Fungi,

Paecilomyces lilacinus against H. armigera Transcript Based Analysis of Transgenic

Chickpea Lines Validation of Price Forecast for Chickpea,

Lentil and Blackgrami zkS| ksfxdh gLrkar j .k 10-11Personnel 11Director’s Desk 12

2 Indian Institute of Pulses Research

focused priorities in research. On thisoccasion the newly constructedbuildings of Training andCommunication Centre and AICRP’swere inaugurated and two newpublications were also released by theDirector General. Dr. Ayyappanconveyed his best wishes to all thescientists and staff of IIPR and left withan encouraging note to work togetherfor the betterment of the country andthe mankind.

Dr. Panjab Singh,Former Secretary,DARE & DirectorGeneral, ICAR andChairman, EmpoweredCommittee, NationalAgricultural ScienceFund, New Delhi,visited the Institute onFebruary 16, 2015 torev iew the NASFFunded Project‘Development of pod borer resistanttransgenic pigeonpea and chickpea’.Three core groups (ICAR-IIPR, Kanpur;Bose Institute and St. Xavier’s College,Kolkata; AAU-Jorhat, NRCPB-NewDelhi, UAS-Dharwad) involved in the

project and Dr. P.K. Agrawal, ADG,NASF, ICAR, were also present at thereview meeting. Dr. N.P. Singh,Director, IIPR welcomed the delegates

Dr. Panjab Singh, Chairman, EmpoweredCommittee, NASF visited IIPR

and highlighted the importantachievements of Phase I of the project,followed by presentation on progressof research work during the secondphase. Dr. Panjab Singh expressed hishappiness over the progress of the

project and urged towork in synergisticmode. Dr. Singh alsovisited containmentfaci l i ty andexperimental fieldsof the Institute andappreciated thecleanliness of thecampus. Dr. Singhurged all scientiststo work harder forfulf i l l ing theaspirations of the

nation in pulses self-sufficiency. TheIIPR fraternity was honoured by hispresence and hope to be guided by hiswisdom in times to come.

Workshop on IPRProtection in Agricultural

Research HeldAn awareness and sensitization

workshop on “IPR protection inagricultural research” was organized onMarch 13, 2015 at the Institute. About100 participants including scientists,technical officers, research associatesand senior research fellows attendedthe workshop. Dr. N.P. Singh, Director,IIPR in his opening remarksemphasized upon the need to carry outresearch work keeping IPR issues inmind and protect the intellectualproperties by patenting, registering ordrafting of IP documents properly. Dr.H.S. Chawla, Professor & Head,Department of Genetics and Plant

Breeding, GPPUA&T, Pantnagardelivered a lecture on IPR issues andchallenges in Biotechnology andmicroorganisms. Dr. Shiv Datt Sharma,Senior Scientist, IP & TM, ICAR HQNew Delhi talked about the IPManagement in ICAR system. Mr VikasAsawat, Patent Attorney from Kotadelivered talk on copyrights,trademarks and geographicalindicators. Dr. Pratibha Brahmi, Officer-in-Charge, Germplasm Exchange Unit,NBPGR, New Delhi spoke about thegermplasm exchange: Policies andrelated issues. Dr. P.K. Singh, PrincipalScientist IISR, Lucknow and ExRegistrar, PPV & FR presented thedetails of Protection of Plant Varietiesand Farmers’ Rights Act 2001.Professor Munna Singh, Vice-Chancellor, CSAUA&T, Kanpur was theChief Guest at the plenary session.Prof. Singh distributed the certificatesto the participants and gave concludingremarks about the workshop. Dr.Bansa Singh, the organizing secretarypresented the vote of thanks.

these efforts and exhorted for furthercapitalizing on these. He exhorted thescientists to concentrate upon the

Pulses Newsletter : January - March, 2015 3

and Dr. Veena Khanna on“Review on microbiologicalresearch under AICRP-chickpea,pigeonpea and MULLaRP for thepast decade - Issues to beaddressed”. The significantachievements in microbiologicalresearch made under the AICRPprogrammes were criticallyrev iewed. Dr. N.P. Singh

emphasized the need onestablishment of microbial repositoryto maintain the working cultures ofpotential microbial strains identifiedthrough AICRP programmes. Theworkshop concluded with vote ofthanks from Dr. M. Senthilkumar.

Microbiologists' Meet Held at IIPRA workshop on ‘Reviewing

and priorit izing themicrobiological research underAICRP-chickpea, pigeonpea andMULLaRP’ was organized at theInstitute on March 3, 2015. Totaltwelve scientists associated withmicrobiological research atdifferent AICRP centres in thecountry participated in theworkshop, along with ProjectCoordinators and Heads of Divisions ofthe Institute. Dr. N.P. Singh, Directorwelcomed the expert guests. Dr.Mohan Singh briefed themicrobiological activities at IIPR. Leadlecture on “Future challenges on BNFresearch” was presented by Dr. D.L.N.

Rao, Project Coordinator, AINP of SoilBiodiversity and Biofertilizers, IISS,Bhopal, followed by another leadlecture on “Advanced bioinoculanttechnology and its commercialization”by Dr. A.K. Saxena, PS, IARI NewDelhi. Presentations were made by Dr.Poonam Sharma, Dr. R. Gundappagol

Training cum Awareness Programme on PPV and FRA OrganisedA one-day training programme on

‘Protection of plant varieties andfarmers’ right Act , 2001' was organizedat the Institute in collaboration withProtection of Plant Varieties andFarmers’ Rights Authority, New Delhion February 26, 2015. Theprogramme was inaugurated by Prof.R.R. Hanchinal, Chairperson,PPV&FRA, New Delhi and waspresided by Dr. N.P. Singh, Director,IIPR. Dr. Ravi Prakash, Registrar,PPV&FRA, New Delhi, Dr. P.K. Singh,Pr. Scientist, IISR, Lucknow, Dr.Sanjeev Gupta, PC (MULLaRP) andDr. S.K. Chaturvedi, Head, CropImprovement Division were also

present at the occasion.The training programmewas attended by 99farmers f rom KanpurDehat, Fetehpur andJalaun district of UttarPradesh and two subjectmatter specialists fromKVKs. The speakerselaborated on the need ofprotection of plant varietiesand farmers’ rights in the present globalcontext and highlighted the generalfunctions of the authority and proceduresof registration. The speakers urged thefarmers to register their native varieties

with the authority. The farmers showedkeen interest in the training programme.The programme was coordinated by Dr.(Mrs.) Uma Sah and Dr. Sushil KumarSingh.

National Science Day wascelebrated on February 28, 2015 withgreat enthusiasm in the Institute with

theme of ‘Science for nation building’.Dr. J.H. Kulkarni, former Vice-Chancellor, UAS Dharwad was the

Chief guest and Dr. U.P.Singh, former Head, Divisionof Genetics and PlantBreeding, BHU, Varanasi wasthe special guest on theoccasion. Dr. N.P. Singh,Director welcomed thegathering and briefed aboutthe Institute’s research anddevelopment activities and

National Science Day Celebratedmentioned the importance of scientificpractices in agriculture including pulsecultivation. Dr. J.H. Kulkarni stressedon making science simpler for itsgreater comprehension among themasses. Dr. U.P. Singh, highlighted theneed for research work to be moreoriented towards the changing climaticconditions. The programme ended withvote of thanks by Dr. S.K. Chaturvedi,Head, Crop Improvement Division. Theprogramme was conducted by Dr.(Mrs.) Uma Sah.


Research Advisory Committee Meeting Held

validated at farmers’ fields. Low costintegrated pest management modulesare being developed.

The RAC appreciated the on-going research programmes and theachievements. The final remark of theChairman was to increase productionand productivity as achieved during pastwhich was due to the concertedresearch efforts of the Institute and theAICRP programmes.

The 21st Research AdvisoryCommittee (RAC) meeting of theInsti tute was held under thechairmanship of Dr. J.H. Kulkarni,Former Vice-Chancellor, UAS, Dharwadon February 27-28, 2015. The meeting

was attended by Dr. R.K. Jain, JointDirector (Education), IARI, New Delhi,Dr. U.P. Singh, Former Head, Divisionof Genetics & Plant Breeding, BHU,Varanasi, Dr. V.V. Ramamurthy,Principal Scientist, IARI, New Delhi,

Project Coordinators of Chickpea,Pigeonpea and MULLaRP and allHeads of Divisions.

Dr. N.P. Singh, Director IIPRwelcomed the dignitaries andapprised the house about progress

of research work doneduring last one year. TheInstitute developed threeimproved varieties ofchickpea viz., IPC 2004-98,IPC 2004-1 and IPC 2005-62 forcultivation in U.P. Significantprogress has been achievedtowards herbicide tolerance,combined tolerance to droughtand heat and development of

transgenic events in chickpea for podborer resistance and drought tolerance.Production technologies such asintegrated nutrient management, watermanagement, zero tillage and resourceconservation technologies have been

IMC Meeting HeldThe 36 th Inst i tute

Management Committeemeeting was held on March10, 2015 under thechairmanship of Dr. N.P.Singh, Director. The meetingwas attended by Dr. A.K.Patra, Director, IISS, Bhopal,Dr. Jitendra Kumar, Ex-Principal Scientist, IARI New

Delhi and Dr. V.V.Ramamoorthy, Ex-PrincipalScientist, IARI New Delhi alongwith all Heads of Divisions andProject Coordinators. Besidesdeliberations on variousagenda items, the Membersappreciated the progress madeby the Institute.

To improve the skill/capabilitiesand bridge the knowledge gap of thefarmers, a training programme on ‘Seedproduction techniques in pulses’ wasorganized at the Institute on March 25,2015. About 100 farmers from differentagroclimatic zones viz., Kanpur Dehatof Uttar Pradesh and Bhind district ofMadhya Pradesh participated in theprogramme. While inaugurating theprogramme Dr. N.P. Singh, Directorurged the farming community to adoptthe best production and protection

technologies for quali ty seedproduction and to raise their socio-economic status.

Training on Seed Production Organized for FarmersThe training programme covered

various aspects of seed productiontechnology viz., varieties suitable fordifferent sowing conditions, productionand protection technologies, field andseed standards, seed certification andseed storage. Farmers got acquaintedwith the seed production programmebeing carried out at the Institute andwere provided with relevant literature.The training programme wascoordinated by Dr. P.K. Katiyar, NodalOfficer (Seeds).


Compounds Enhancing Seed Germination andVigour in Kabuli Chickpea

Dr. G.P. Dixit Joins asPC AICRP on Chickpea

Dr. G.P. Dixit has joined as ProjectCoordinator (Chickpea)on February 28, 2015. Dr.Dixit joined IIPR Kanpurin January, 1992 andsince then he has beenassociated in the variouspulses improvementprogrammes. He has developed tenvarieties of fieldpea which are verypopular among the farmers.

Mr. Rakesh Awardedwith Chancellor’s

Gold MedalMr. Rakesh, Technical Officer of

the Institute was honoured by Hon’bleGovernor and Chancellor, Uttar Pradeshduring 19th Convocation of BundelkhandUniversity, Jhansi on February 27,2015. Mr. Rakesh was awarded fiveGold Medals and two silver Medals forsecuring highest marks in M.Sc. (Ag.)in the subject of Agronomy.

Research Highlights

Dr. N.P. Singh AwardedDr. N.P. Singh,

Director was awardedthe prestigious ‘BiovedAgri-Innovation Award-2015’ by BiovedResearch Insti tute,

Allahabad, for outstanding contributionin the field of ‘Innovative technologydevelopment and its large scaleadoption’, which enhanced the recordpulses production to the tune of 19.28million tonnes during 2014-15.

Thin seed coat and rapid wateruptake during imbibition processleading to seed rotting and subsequentpoor plant population is one of the majorconstraints in kabuli chickpea affectinggrain yield. High soil moisture anddeterioration of seeds has shown to beaccelerated at higher soil temperatureduring October sowing. A large numberof chemicals/botanicals are known toinduce seed germination at faster rate.Among various compounds, gibberellicacid (GA), salicylic acid (SA), volatilecompounds of Lantana leaf extractshowed enhanced germination withfaster radicle emergence and higherroot vigour as compared to control whennormal water was used for priming.Positive effects of GA on enhancingearly vigour may be due to its role insynthesis of hydrolytic enzymesthereby supplying nutrients at an earlystage of germination. Salicylic aciddemonstrated dual advantages in

terms of faster germination andimparting tolerance against soil bornepathogens. The volatile compoundsisolated from Lantana leaf extracted inhexane is yet to be characterized forits positive effects in seed germination.Largescale testing of these chemicalsin field conditions will provide foolproofresults in seed priming.

P.K. Katiyar, S.K. Chaturvedi, P.S. Basu,Vijay Laxmi and Amrit Lamichaney

Elite Mesorhizobium for Enhancing BNF in Chickpea

Chickpea rhizobia viz.,Mesorhizobium ciceri, M.mediterraneum and M. muleienseshare a high similarity of the symbioticgenes nodC and nifH. Nevertheless,the rhizobia viz., M. amorphae, M. lotiand M. tianshanense have also beendescribed to nodulate chickpea. Toexplore the climate resilient nitrogenf ixation and rhizobial symbioticpotential of chickpea, contrastinggenotypes and wild cultivars weregrouped based on nodulation and plantbiomass and their symbioticassociated rhizobia were isolated fromsurface sterilized root nodules. Forty-six rhizobial colonies were isolatedfrom 17 genotypes including wildrelatives of chickpea. Bacterial colonymorphology after seven days post-

inoculation varied in terms of colonysize, elevation and exo-polysaccharideproduction. These Mesorhizobiumisolates are being analyzed for theirdiversity through restriction analysis of16S rDNA with restriction enzymes likeHae-III, Mbo-I, and Msp-1 and assessedfor their nitrate tolerance level.

Akanksha, Senthilkumar,Mohan Singh and Paulraj

Opaque (a) and translucent (b)colonies of Mesorhizobium


Screening for HostPlant Resistance

against Gram PodBorer

In rabi 2014-15, 736 germplasm(144 exotic and 592 indigenous) ofchickpea along with check varietiesviz., JG 16, JG 11 and Ujjawal weresown at Regional Research Station,Phanda, Bhopal for screening againstinfestation of gram pod borer,Helicoverpa armigera Hubner. Themaximum larval incidence wasrecorded on EC 223011 (6 larvae/plant).Highest leaf damage was recordedfrom IC 116490 (18/5 plants), whilemaximum pod damage was recordedfrom IC 95108 (34/5 plants).Interestingly, few accessions viz., EC198580, EC 198583, EC 198707, EC219928 and EC 220006 were foundundamaged by H. armigera.

H. armigera larva in chickpea

Sujayanand, G.K., Archana Singh,Dhanjay N. Gawande and

Dibendu Datta

New Sources of Resistance against PowderyMildew in Rajmash

During first fortnight of February,2015, powdery mildew caused byErysiphe polygoni was observed to be

severe on rajmash when the crop wasat podding stage due to favourableweather conditions (270/130 Ctemperature and about 66% humidity)at IIPR. The disease severity in 54

accessions was measured by using 0-9 scale (0: No infection, 1: 1-5%infection and 2: 5-15% infection).

Based on f ieldobservations, 4accessions viz., EC500232, IC 25537, GPR203 and EC 15 werefound immune and 5accessions viz., ND3170, PDR 14, PL227648, Amber andVarun were foundresistant (<5% infection).Accessions EC 397834,IC 14581, EC 400400,EC 564797 and EC565673 reported 5-15%powdery mildew infection

whereas eleven accessions reported100% disease incidence.

P.R. Saabale, R.K. Mishra,A.K. Parihar, and G.R. Pangtey

Expression of BtProtein Varies in

Leaves and FlowersTotal protein isolated from leaves

and flowers from transgenic pigeonpeaplants (199 DAS), indicated thatexpression in leaves (40.90 to 8.70 ng/mg of TSP) are higher as compared toflower (19.11 to 6.98 ng/mg of TSP).This may be due to production ofsecondary metabolics in reproductivestage of plants.

Alok Shukla, Arvind Kumar Singh,Alok Das and N.P. Singh

Enhancing SMBC and SMBP with PulsesResidues

A field study to assess carry overeffect of pulse residue incorporation onsoil microbial biomass carbon (SMBC)and phosphorus (SMBP) during rabirevealed significant augmentation inthese soil health attributes over thosein bulk soil. In chickpea, combinedmulch and cowpea residueincorporation (CPRI) resulted in higherbiomass carbon (451 µg/g soil) andphosphorus (45.6 µg/g soil) over mulchand green gram residue incorporation,which could be due to higher levels ofC and P substrates available formicrobial growth. Soil physicalconditions and water relations wereimproved following mulch and residueincorporation. Compared to bulk soil,

higher rhizospheric values of P wereevident due to higher concentration ofroot exudates stimulating organicphosphorus mineralization (as a resultof enhanced phosphatase activitiesand microorganism). Similarly,rhizodeposition of carbon compoundsled to enhanced microbial growth withenhanced mineralization of organicmatter (added through mulch andresidue incorporation) in soil. The studysuggested the possible role of mulchand pulse residue incorporation forimproved soil microbial health.

Ummed Singh, C.S. Praharaj,Narendra Kumar and S.S. Singh


First Report of Stem rot in PigeonpeaDuring the month of December,

2014 and January, 2015 a disease ofpigeonpea characterized by watersoaked lesions on the leaflets and

rotting ofstem wasobse r v ed .D i s e a s esy m pt om sw e r eo b s e r v e dmostly on theupper part ofthe branches.The fungusisolated fromaffected plantparts hadwhite fluffy

mycelium on PDA and produced blackcoloured irregular shaped sclerotia inpetriplates after 5-7 days of incubationat 200C. On the basis of symptoms onthe affected plants and the culturalcharacteristics, the pathogen (fungus)was identif ied as Sclerotiniasclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary.

S. sclerotiorum is a ubiquitousnecrotrophic pathogen and has widesthost rangeamong the fungalpathogens ofcrop plants.Stem rot is acommon diseaseand known toaffect many rabipulses such asf i e l d p e a ,chickpea, lentiland rajmash. In India pigeonpea hasnot been reported as a natural host ofS. sclerotiorum till date.

Stem rot infection in pigeonpea maybe attributed to prolonged cool weather(Av. maximum and minimum temp. 190Cand 7.00C) and high humidity (83.4 and70.1%) with foggy days and very lowlight intensity (Av. 3.0 hrs/day) duringwinter season (2014-15).

R.K. Mishra, Naimuddin andP.R. Saabale

Sclerotinia sclerotiorumaffected pigeonpea plantin the field. Inset : closeup of affected branchshowing white mycelialgrowth of the fungus.

Fluffy whitemyceliumgrowth with blacksclerotia on PDA

The allelic variants of two DRFgenes viz., hybrid-proline-rich protein(CcHyPRP) and cold and droughtregulatory protein (CcCDP) genes wereexplored in a set of pigeonpeagenotypes. Nucleotide diversity washigh in CcHyPRP alleles (0.00126)compared to CcCDP alleles (0.00045).

Allelic Variants of Two Drought ResponsiveFactors (Drfs) in Pigeonpea

Nucleotide diversity in CcHyPRP gene amplified (a) and Nucleotide diversity inCcCDP gene amplified (b) from 24 pigeonpea genotypes

0.003

0.002

0.001

00 100 200 300

Nucleotide Position

0.001

0.0008

0.0006

0.0004

0.0002

00 100 200 300 400

Pi Pi

Nucleotide Position

(a) (b)

Motifs l ike prol ine rich region,extension like protein repeat and tryp-alpha-amyl (protease inhibitor/seedstorage), and histidine rich region,lysine rich region and dehydrin wereidentified in the alleles. Overall, droughtresponsive factors are conserved in thepigeonpea genotypes.

Alok Das, Shallu Thakur, Naveen Kumar, P.S. Basu and N.P. Singh

Phytate and Tannins inMungbean

Phytates and tannins are twoimportant anti-nutrients of mungbean.Phytic acid binds Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu andZn and makes the minerals unavailablefor absorption in the intestines, whereastannins form complexes with proteinand reduce the digestibility of protein.Tannins may diminish weight gains,apparent digestibi l i ty and feedutil ization efficiency. Significantvariability for both these anti-nutrientphytochemicals were recorded inmungbean genotypes. The phytateswere present in the range of 6.23 – 8.43mg/g in seeds of tested mungbeangenotypes. The genotypes viz., Meha,ML 267, ML 818, KM 2, JM 721, LGG450, LGG 407 and PKVAKM 4 containlow phytate (<7.00 mg/g) in the seeds.The tannin content of mungbeangenotypes varied in the range of 7.30 –9.49 mg/g in seeds. Genotypes viz.,Meha, NDM 1, HUM 2, HUM 16, IPM2-03 and LGG 450 contain low tannins(<8.00 mg/g) in the seeds. Simpleprocessing techniques such assoaking and germination as well asmany traditional methods of foodpreparation such as fermentation andcooking helps in removal of phytatesas well as tannins.

R.P. Srivastava, Jagdish Singh andN.L. Meena

Variation in SCMR inFieldpea

Leaf nitrogen content in situ couldbe measured through SPADchlorophyll meter reading (SCMR)which becomes surrogate trait ofchlorophyll content in leaf and thushelps to enhance the yield viamonitoring of the leaves nitrogencontent. The present investigation wastaken up to ascertain the geneticvariability for SCMR in improvedfieldpea genotypes. SCMR wererecorded from two sets of station trialscomprising of 14 dwarf and 14 tallgenotypes. In dwarf type fieldpea,highest SCMR was recorded in IPFD2014-4 (48.08), whereas in tall type


highest SCMR was depicted in IPF2014-22 (41.30). The results indicatedthat the dwarf type fieldpea containsmore chlorophyll content as comparedto tall type. The values of SCMR canbe used in the trait-based breeding

Performance of urdbean with stubble retention (a) over mulching (b) and with lightcombine harvestor (c)

a b c

programme to improve water andnitrogen use efficiency of fieldpeagenotypes.

A.K.Parihar, G.P. Dixit, Ummed Singhand S.K. Chaturvedi

Enhancing RUE in Rice-Urdbean in Southern IndiaAn effort was made to enhance the

productivity and resource use efficiencyof pulses in rice fallow using twosystems viz., rice-urdbean andrice+urdbean relay cropping system. Inrice–pulses system, higher growth,development and productivity of urdbeanunder stubble retention (cut vertically)resulted in enhanced system productivityand resource use efficiency (RUE) andwas superior to rice straw mulch (spreadhorizontally). Usefulness of light combineharvester for simultaneous harvesting of

rice and seeding of urdbean has beenestablished. Supplementary irrigationthrough mobile sprinkler using farm pondwater at critical stage improved cropestablishment and RUE and couldsustain urdbean productivity in both thesystems. Strategies are underway forcontrol of grassy weeds (Echinocloaspp.) under unpuddled condition, betterweed management in rice fallow pulsesystem and improved farmmechanization through fine tuning ofzero till seed drill for vertisols.

K. Subramaniyan*, E. Subramanian*, C.S. Praharaj, S.S. Singh and N. Kumar*TNRRI, Aduthurai (TN)

Changing Pulse PriceScenario in Major

States of IndiaAnalysis of prices of pulses

revealed that prices were around 20 to30 per cent higher during this year.Average wholesale prices werecollected from Agmarknet (http://agmarknet.nic.in) for chickpea andpigeonpea in major producing statesduring March, 2014 and March, 2015(till 25th March). During March, 2015,average wholesale prices of chickpearanged from Rs. 3230 to Rs. 3750/q,which were about 20% higher thanprice levels during March, 2014.Present market prices were higher thangovernment announced minimumsupport price (MSP) of Rs. 3175/qacross all major states (Maharashtra,Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, MadhyaPradesh, and Uttar Pradesh).

Similar trends were observed incase of pigeonpea. Average wholesaleprices ranged from Rs. 4980 to Rs.5950/q during March, 2015, which were25 - 30% higher as compared to lastyear. Average market prices ofpigeonpea ruled above the MSP of Rs.4350/q across major pigeonpeaproducing states.

Due to delayed and deficit rainfall(12% shortfall at national level) theacreage and production of pulses werereduced. According to Ministry ofAgriculture, area under rabi pulses was10% lower as compared to last year.Second advance estimates predictedproduction of pulses to be at 18.43 mt(compared to 19.28 mt last year).Besides this, unseasonal rains duringthe first week of March, 2015 havedamaged the standing rabi crops inUttar Pradesh, Rajasthan andMaharashtra. All these factors havecontributed to higher prices of pulsesduring this year.

Shripad Bhat

A field investigation was startedduring 2009 to evaluate different ricebased cropping systems for theirefficiency and shift in weed flora underzero and conventional tillage practices.Six years of study revealed significantshift in weed flora due to tillage practiceand cropping system. Annual grasseslike Anagallis arvensis, Melilotus spp.,Avena fatua, Phalaris minor andChenopodium album were dominantunder conventional tillage, however,perennial weeds like Convolvulusarvensis and Sorghum helepense weredominant under zero-tillage. In case ofcropping system, Avena fatua and

Weed Shift under Tillage and Pulse BasedCropping System

Phalaris minor were dominant in rice-wheat and Chenopodium album andMelilotus spp. were dominant underrice-chickpea. More number ofSorghum helepense was recorded inrice-chickpea-mungbean croppingsystem. The study indicates that dueto change in crop establishmentpractices f rom conventional toconservation agriculture, weedmanagement strategies need to bechanged.

Narendra Kumar, S. Paulraj,S.S. Singh, Arti Yadav and

Satendra Yadav


(a) H.armigera with spore coated diet,(b) Dead insect cadaver, (c) Spores

emerging from insect cadaver, (d) closeview of paecilomyces spores

Paecilomyces lilacinus is a highlyeffective nematode egg parasitic soilhypomycetes, successfully exploitedas bio-nematicide and hasentomopathogenic potential on insectpests. A preliminary bioassay wascarried out to test whether P. lilacinus(strain PL 56) is effective against grampod borer, Helicoverpa armigera. Threekinds of treatment viz., larval dip inspore suspension, diet dip in sporesuspension, diet coating with sporepowder and control without any fungaltreatment were used. The larvalmortality was observed in all treatments(20-60% for larval dip and 40-100% forspore coating) compared to control. Toconfirm whether the mortality was dueto P. lilacinus, the insect cadaver waskept in PDA for further observation. After8-10 days, colony growth sporulationof P. lilacinus was observed to emergefrom the cadaver which confirms thecausal agent as P. lilacinus. It is asignificant preliminary observation in thecontext that single fungus has the

potential to suppress two importantpests.

Sujayanand, G.K.,R. Jagadeeswaran, Bansa Singh and

Hem Saxena

Nematode Egg Parasitic Fungi, Paecilomyceslilacinus against H. armigera

Total RNA extractedfrom young leaves oftransgenic chickpea lineswas reverse transcribed tocDNA pool at 42°C for 45min, followed by PCR withgene specific primers andhousekeeping actin gene.Gene specific transcriptwas identified in all thechickpea progeniesindicating expression(transcription) of Bt gene inleaves of transgenicchickpea lines.

M: 1 kb plus ladder; PC: Positive control; DC: DCP-92; NU:Null plant; RN: RNA, NC: No template control

RT-PCR of transgenic chickpea lines with genespecific primers

Transcript Based Analysis of TransgenicChickpea Lines

Shallu Thakur, Devesh Mishra, Alok Shukla, Arvind Kumar,Alok Das and N.P. Singh

Validation of PriceForecast for Chickpea,Lentil and Blackgram

The prices of pulses in India areprimarily determined by domesticmarket forces along with the domesticprice policy. To ensure the remunerativeprices for farmers, price forecast fordifferent pulses is worked out regularly.The advisory is prepared on the basisof the price trends, opinion surveyamong farmers, traders and marketofficials and statistical analysis of thetime series data on prices for the pastnine years. According to the study,prices in November were forecasted forlentil to hover around Rs. 5,000 toRs. 5,500, chickpea: Rs 3,200 to 3,800and blackgram: Rs. 4,900 to Rs. 5,600on the basis of different grades.

It has been observed that usuallyfarmers in Uttar Pradesh don’t sell theirproduce by grading though it is acommon practice in other adjoiningstates. So the farmers in Uttar Pradeshare advised to sell their produce aftercleaning and grading. The pricevalidation study found that the modalprice for all the three commodities werein the forecasted price range.

Deepak Singh, S.K. Singh,Riyaj Uddeen and Avanish Katiyar

Commodity Forecasted price

(Rs./q)

Average modal price in U.P.

(Source: Agmarknet)

(Rs./q)

Chickpea 3200-3800 3363.00

Lentil 5000-5500 5109.00

Black gram 4900-5600 5751.00


i zkS| ksfxdh gLrkarj .k

fnuk¡d Qjojh 13, 2015 dksmRrj i zns' k ds cqUnsy[k.M {ks= dsgehj i qj ft ys esa d"̀kd l gHkkfxrki zt kfr p;u i jh{k.k ¼,Qi hoh, l Vh½ds LFky i j i z{ks= fnol dk vk; kst ufd; k x;kA mDr vk; kst u dk mn~?kkVudj rs gq, l aLFkku ds funs' kd Mk-ujsUnz i zrki fl ag us d"̀kdksa dks l q>kofn; k fd os fofHkUu df̀"k i kfj fLFkdh esanyguh Ql yksa dh mUur i zkS| ksfxdhdks i z; ksx esa yk,aA Mk- ,e-l h- fnokdj ]funs' kd] xUuk fodkl funs' kky; ] Hkkj rl j dkj us el wj mRi knu dh i zkS| ksfxdh dsfodkl esa l aLFkku }kjk fd, x, i z; kl ksa dh

gehj i qj esa i z{ks= fnol vk; ksft r

l j kguk dhA Mk- v' kksd dqekj ] l a; qDrfuns' kd ¼nygu½ df̀"k funs' kky; ] y[kuÅus nyguh Ql yksa ds fodkl l s l EcfU/krdsUnz ,oa j kT; l j dkj dh fofHkUu ; kst ukvksa

j kT; Lr j h; i zf' k{k.k vk; ksft r

dh uohure t kudkjh fdl kuksa dks mi yC/kdj k; hA dqy 400 fdl kuksa] 16 i zl kjdk;ZdrkZvksa] l aLFkku ds 10 oSKkfudksa ,oaLo;al soh l axBuksa ds i zfrfuf/k; ksa us mDri z{ks= dk Hkze.k fd; kA mDr vol j i jd"̀kdksa us vk' okl u fn; k fd os j ch dh[ksrh esa el wj dh p; fur i zt kfr; ksa dks ghcM+s i Sekus i j cks,axsA l aLFkku ds funs' kd,oa oSKkfudksa us gehj i qj ft ys ds eokbZt kjxk¡o esa gks jgh el wj dh [ksrh dk fujh{k.k

fd; kA Mk- , l -ds- fl ag] foHkkxk/; {k]l kekft d foKku us mDr i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØedk l a; kst u fd; kA

l aLFkku esa fnuk¡d 2&6 Qjojh] 2015ds nkSjku df̀"k i zkS| ksfxdh i zcU/ku vfHkdj .k¼vkRek½ ds rRok/kku esa ßgkbZVsd i zksMD'kuvkWQ i Yl st Þ fo"k; i j ,di zf' k{k.k dk vk; kst u fd; kx; kA mDr i zf' k{k.k dk eq[ ;mn~ns' ; Fkk i zl kj dk;Zdrkvksadks nyguh Ql yksa dh [ksrhl EcU/kh i zkS| ksfxdh dhuohure t kudkjh mi yC/kdjkukA mDr vk; kst u dkmn~?kkVu dj rs gq, l aLFkkuds funs' kd Mk- ujsUnz i zrkifl ag us crk; k fd fofHkUut yok;q ,oa okrkoj .k esa nygu mRi knul EcU/kh ubZ i zkS| ksfxdh dks mi ; ksx esa ykusdh egrh vko' ; drk gSA l kFk gh mUgksausl aLFkku }kjk fodfl r dqN vU; i zkS| ksfxfd; ksadh Hkh t kudkjh nhA l aLFkku ds oSKkfudksa}kjk mDr vol j i j i zt kfr fodkl mRi knu]l qj {kk ,oa dVkbZ mi jkUr i zcU/ku vkfn dsl EcU/k esa egRoi w.kZ uohure t kudkjh mi yC/k

djkbZ xbZA mDr i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØe esa mifuns' kd] df̀"k fo"k; oLrq fo' ks"kK] chtHk.Mkj i zHkkjh] Cykd Vhe eSust j ¼ch-Vh-

,e-½ l fgr >k¡l h] fp=dwV /kke ,oa vkxjke.My l s i /kkjs dqy 34 i zfrHkkfx; ksa us Hkkxfy; kA i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØe dk i gys vkSj cknesa ewY;kadu Hkh fd; k x; kA i zfrHkkfx; ksa dksl aLFkku }kjk i zdkf' kr l kfgR; Hkh mi yC/kdjk; k x; kA Mk- , l -ds- fl ag] foHkkxk/; {k]l kekft d foKku us mDr i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØedk l a; kst u fd; kA

ICAR Sponsored Summer Courseon

Novel Genomic Tools and Modern Breeding Approaches

for Enhancing Productivity and Nutritional Quality of Pulse Crops

will be organized by ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research,

Kanpur on

September 5 – 25, 2015

Important datesLast date of receiving application : June 1, 2015Intimation of selection : June 6, 2015Confirmation about participation : June 10, 2015

Course DirectorDr. N.P. Singh, Director

E-mail: [email protected]: 0512-2572464; F: 0512-2572582

Course CoordinatorDr. Aditya Pratap

E-mail: [email protected]; Mo: 91 9452060055

Dr. K.R. SorenE-mail: [email protected];

Mo: 91 9889705725Dr. Alok Das

E-mail:[email protected]; Mo: 91 9451446964

ANNOUNCEMENT


df̀"k i zn' kZuh&l g&fdl ku esyk esa l gHkkfxrk

Dr. N.P. Singh,Director, was deputedto attend 'TravellingWorkshop on GrainLegume' held inDhaka, Bangladeshon February, 9-11,

2015. Dr. Singh also visited BARI,Pulse Research Station at Joydelpurand participated in group discussionheld about pulse development inSAARC Countries.

Retirement

TransferPersonnel

vk; kst u dk uke vk; kst d fnuk¡d LFkku df̀"k i zn' kZuh us' kuy ,dSMeh vkWQ

,xzhdYpj l kbal ] ubZ fnYyh

3-6 Qjojh, 2015

,u-Mh-vkj -vkbZ-] djuky

mRrj&i wohZ fdl ku esyk

l h-i h-vkj -vkbZ-] f' keyk 19-21 Qjojh, 2015

l h-i h-vkj -, l -] i Vuk

17oha Hkkj rh; df̀"k oSKkfud ,oa d"̀kd dkaxzsl

ck;ksosM fj l pZ l aLFkku] bykgkckn

21-22 Qjojh, 2015

bykgkckn

fdl ku df̀"k esyk fdl ku Qksje i zk-fy-] ubZ fnYyh

26-28 Qjojh, 2015

i zxfr eSnku] ubZ fnYyh

df̀"k i zn' kZuh l h-, -vkj -Mh-] ubZ fnYyh

12-14 ekpZ, 2015

vkbZ-vkbZ-, l -vkj - y[kuÅ

17ok¡ mRrjh fdl ku esyk

vkbZ-oh-vkj -vkbZ-] cjsyh 17-20 ekpZ, 2015

vkbZ-oh-vkj -vkbZ-] cjsyh

Dr. UmmedSingh, SeniorScientist (Agronomy)was deputed toparticipate inI n t e r n a t i o n a lConference on‘Global Forum for Innovations inAgriculture-2015’ held at Abu Dhabi,United Arab Emirates during March 9-11, 2015.

Deputation Abroad

d"̀kd i zf' k{k.k vk; ksft r

l aLFkku esa ßnyguh Ql yksa dh mRi knui zkS| ksfxdhÞ fo"k; i j ,Vh,e, ¼vkRek½ ; kst uk}kjk i zk; ksft r rhu i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØeksa dkvk; kst u fd; k x; kA mDr i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØeds vUrxZr i zf' k{kqvksas dh vko' ; drk] mi yC/kl aLFkku ,oa ekSt wnk d"̀kdh; i fj fLFkfr; ksa dks/; ku esa j [krs gq, fof' k"V i zf' k{k.k fn; kx; kA fnuk¡d t uojh 15&17] 2015 dks

vk; ksft r i gys i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØe esas fcgkjds l eLrhi qj ft ys l s i /kkjs 24 d"̀kdksa ,oai zl kj dk;ZdrkZvksa us Hkkx fy; kA fnuk¡dekpZ 2&4] 2015 dks e/; i zns' k ds fl okuhft ys l s i /kkjs dq̀y 21 d"̀kdksa ,oa nks i zl kjdk;ZdrkZvksa us i zf' k{k.k esa Hkkx fy; kA rhl j si zf' k{k.k dk;ZØe esa e/; i zns' k ds fHk.Mft ys l s i /kkjs 28 d"̀kdksa ,oa ,d i zl kjdk;ZdrkZ us Hkkx fy; kA i zf' k{k.k dk;ZØeksa esai zf' k{kqvksa dks l gHkkfxrk ds egRo dks l e>krsgq, ewyHkwr t kudkjh mi yC/k djk;h xbZAQl y l q/kkj ] mRi knu] l qj {kk ,oa dVkbZmi jkUr i zcU/ku t Sl s l Hkh egRoi w.kZ fo"k; ksal EcU/kh uohure t kudkjh i znku dh xbZAi zf' k{kqvksa dks l aLFkku }kjk fodfl r rduhdksa,oa i zkS| ksfxfd; ksa ds i z{ks=ksa dks fn[kk; k x; kAi zf' k{kqvksa dks l aLFkku }kjk i zdkf' kr l kfgR;Hkh mi yC/k djk; k x; kA Mk- , l -ds- fl ag]foHkkxk/; {k] l kekft d foKku us mDr i zf' k{k.kdk;ZØe dk l eUo;u fd; kA

Name Post held Date of retirement Smt. Loung Shree SSS 31.1.2015 Mr. Chandra Kishan SSS 28.2.2015

Name Designation From To W.e.f. Dr. (Mrs.) Archana Singh Sr. Scientist

(EB & PGR) ICAR-IGFRI, Jhansi

ICAR-IIPR, Kanpur

1.1.2015


Published by Dr. N.P. Singh, Director, ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur-208 024Tel. : 0512-2570264; EPBAX Lines : 0512- 2572464, 2572465; Fax : 0512-2572582

E-mail : [email protected] ; [email protected]; Website; http://www.iipr.res.in

Printed at Army Printing Press, 33, Nehru Road, Sadar Cantt., Lucknow-226 002. Tel. : 0522-2481164, 6565333

Director’s DeskDear Readers,

The year 2015 witnessedexceptionally unusual weather conditionthat brought unseasonal rain andhailstorm across all over the North India.It is recorded wettest March of last 48years. In March 2015, 62.5 mm rainfallwas recorded which was almost 100%more than normal (32.1 mm) and highestin the past 100 years (in 1915, it was 78mm).This year, western disturbanceswere not only more active, but alsoextended up to April. The showers andhail, which came at a time when rabi cropwas to be harvested, hit about 10 millionhectares of sown area. Light wintershowers can be good for the rabi crop,but normally they do not need heavyrainfall. The standing wheat, mustardand chickpea crops were hit the hardest.Approximately 106 lakh ha harvest wasdamaged only in March. TheBundelkhand region, known to be thepulse bowl of India was amongst thoseworst affected areas of the country.According to the Indian MeteorologicalDepartment information, normally on anaverage various districts of Bundelkhandreceive 6mm of rain in the wintermonths. But this year, the KVKs of Datia,Tikamgarh and Jhansi districts reportedthat Bundelkhand recorded 24.6 mmrainfall during 28 February – 2 March and18 mm during 14 – 15 March, 2015, whichwas not normal. In many cases therewere reports of water logging in the fieldsand in other cases the produce wasflattened due to the strong winds. Therehas been an approximately 10-15% loss/ha in the wheat produce, around 20%loss per ha in the chickpea and 50% lossper ha in the quality of oilseed crop. Apartfrom damaging crops, the heavy wind andrains have also reduced quality of theproduce bringing more misery to thefarmers.

Farming is the primary source oflivelihood for maximum people inBundelkhand and the unseasonal rainfallhas caused a situation of economic crisisfor the farmers. Even though efforts weremade like issuing pre-warning SMSalerts to all farmers, but as the producewas still not ready for harvest, thefarmers could neither harvest their cropsearlier than the scheduled harvest time,nor were they aware of any other optionof protecting their crops.

W hile keeping in mind suchunexpected climatic conditions and theirgrave negative impacts on the ruraleconomy, we need to contemplate onwhat can be an efficient solution tomitigate such problems. What should beour scientific approach to developresilient pulses keeping in view therecent fury of the nature? Most unfortunatepart of the present episode was the timewhich was merely coincidence whenstanding crops were over-laden with

pods with developing grains. Under noconditions, weather predictions andalerts in 2 or 3 days before would bepractically beneficial for farmers underlimited options. Field observations ataffected areas revealed that, longduration pulse crops with delayed podsetting were slightly in a better positionas compared to those already poddedas heavy rain and high velocity windforced the crop to get lodged. This wasindeed a lesson for us to breed pulseshaving adequate mechanical strengthand having lodging resistance. The lentilvarieties such as large seeded DPL 62and IPL 406 were relatively better in fieldsstanding under these unfavourablesituation. There was massive loss ofmost of the rabi crops and pulses likechickpea, lentil and fieldpea. The pulseswith delayed pod setting tend to escapein a better way and also showed partialrestoration after the rains.

There was a sudden outbreak ofHelicoverpa incidence when temperatureincreased. This pest incidence wasphenomenal as high moisture availabilitysuddenly induced pupal germinationwhich otherwise remains dormant dueto severe dry conditions which usuallyprevail during this period. Thus it is

practically impossible to make all theclimatic conditions favourable for a cropfor higher yield under any unpredictablesituation. We need to have contingentplanning to minimize the crop loss dueto sudden unforeseen situations.Unseasonal weather disturbances inrecent past years have become aphenomenon, which has affected foodsecurity and livelihoods of people acrossthe country.

To minimise the impact of suchunseasonal weather conditions on thefood and livelihood security, riskcompensation through crop insurance isa promising alternative. The NationalAgriculture Insurance Scheme supportsthe farmers to get their crops insuredagainst unseasonal weather conditions.However, awareness about suchalternatives is largely lacking at thegrassroots level. Lack of information onsuch compensatory options amongst themost vulnerable farming communitiespushes them away from mitigating theimpacts of climate. To further warnfarmers against the vagaries of climaterelated impacts, the IndianMeteorological Department (IMD) of theGovernment of India in collaboration withleading agricultural institutes in thecountry, provides Integrated Agro metAdvisory Services (IAAS).Our country can not sustain withoutpulses, therefore we hardly can affordsuch huge loss by any means. Such croploss is likely to reduce the total pulseproduction which will lead to priceinflation and increased pulse imports.As pulses are well-adapted to diverseagro-ecological conditions and cropmaturity duration varies with climaticconditions, consequently magnitude ofdamage due to recent unseasonal rainsalso varies with location. The impact ofthe vagaries of nature may be minimizedby altering the sowing time and harvestat different agro-climatic zones. Thestates where pulses were harvestedbefore this havoc, experienced little lossas compared to the northern belt whichusually has prolonged crop maturity.Thus the lesson we learnt necessitatesthe need of the time to expand pulses innew niches and their cultivation in morediversified climates.

(N. P. Singh)

volume 26, no. 1 january - march, 2015 · situ decomposition of crop residue in pearl...

Documents