Hyderabad:
A new, improved protein-rich pea, promising 40 per cent higher yields has been developed by the crop research institute, becoming the first commercially available hybrid legume in the world.
'Pushkal,' the new variety of pigeon pea, has been developed by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).
"With 40 per cent higher yields than the best local varieties, Pushkal is truly the magic pea," William Dar, Director General of ICRISAT said in a report.
The new hybrid thrives in drought conditions and has greater resistance to diseases. It also creates a strong root system which aids greater nitrogen fixation to keep soils fertile.
Noted agricultural scientist M S Swaminathan compared ICRISAT's success in developing 'Pushkal' to that of wheat and rice with dwarfing genes which launched a green revolution in the 1960s.
By adopting a new breeding technology -- Cytoplasmic Male Sterility (CMS) -- the scientists developed Pushkal (ICPH 2671), the world's first pigeonpea hybrid. Though, there are a dozen legumes in the world, due to their self-pollinating nature, commercial hybrids were unavailable.
At ICRISAT, scientists used natural out-crossing to develop hybrid. The process requires female plant in which no viable pollen grains are born.
As per the CMS line, male organs (anthers) are removed from the plants and male sterile line developed. In another method, a female line unable to produce viable pollen is established for hybrid seed production.
This male-sterile line is, therefore, unable to self-pollinate and seed formation is dependent on pollen from the male fertile line. By developing a parental line that has the trait of male-sterility in the cytoplasm (or the cell fluid) it was ensured that all progeny from this line were male-sterile, the report said.
Now, the new hybrid is cultivated on about 5,000 hectares. Referring to such ICRISAT's researches in other parts of the world Dar said, "African farmers are reaping benefits from improved food security and enhanced income from the new varieties."
Through conventional cross breeding techniques the ICRISAT has identified disease-resistant and temperature-fit varieties in eastern and southern Africa.
"Because India has many private seeds companies, we went through the private sector for production and marketing," ICRISAT's principal pigeon pea breeder K S Saxena said. Most of the researches were done in India.
The new hybrid technology has generated interest from countries like Myanmar, Brazil, the Philippines and China.
