NEW DELHI: Short-duration paddy variety
PR-126
, developed by
Punjab Agricultural University
, may be at the centre of controversy for being pushed by the AAP-led state govt despite its low yield but the benefit of it in terms of saving input cost is something which is not being factored in by opposition Congress that has raised its pitch against the variety.
Besides reducing cost of farming, PR-126 has the potential to combat the menace of air pollution in Delhi-NCR as it gives enough post-harvesting window to farmers to prepare their farms for the next crop without resorting to stubble burning. So, more use of the short-duration variety means lesser episodes of biomass burning. Its result is, however, yet to be seen this year as peak harvest season is still a bit far.
Unlike the most popular
Pusa-44
variety, developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), which takes 155-160 days to grow, the short-duration PR-126 variety takes just 123-125 days. Taking 30-35 days less time means not only saving input cost in terms of irrigation but also saving energy and precious groundwater.
The flip side of it is, however, 4-5 quintal per acre less yield of PR-126 compared to Pusa-44 which gives 35-36 quintal per acre. Even at the milling stage, it gives 5 kg less rice and this prompted leader of opposition in Punjab assembly
Partap Singh Bajwa
on Monday to slam chief minister Bhagwant Mann for pushing PR-126.
“The yield problem can, however, be resolved from the next season if the state opts for a high-yielding short-duration crop variety,
Pusa-2090
, developed by IARI. This new variety matches Pusa-44 in terms of yield and PR-126 in terms of duration (123-125 days) to get mature and ready for harvest,” said an official in the agriculture ministry.
The Pusa-2090 variety was, however, formally released this year only for Delhi. A few farmers in Punjab and Haryana have planted this new variety on a limited scale on an experimental basis, but it will take a couple of more years for its wider adoption.
“Unlike Pusa-44 variety which matures in 155 to 160 days, the Pusa-2090 variety took just 120 to 125 days. Yields of both these varieties (34-35 quintal per acre) are almost the same,” Shukhjeet Singh Bhangu, farmer from Kanakwal Bhanguan village of Sangrur district in Punjab, had told TOI last month.
Bhangu, who planted Pusa-2090 in one acre of land on an experimental basis, said the new variety will give farmers an additional 30 days to prepare their farmlands for the next crops (mainly wheat), significantly reducing their reliance on stubble burning. He claimed to have distributed seeds of new variety to couple of more farmers in Sangruru district who have already harvested their paddy crops.
The new variety will not only give farmers more time to prepare for next crop but also help them get equal yield at less input cost as they don’t need to go for additional cycles of irrigation and spray if the crop is ready for harvest in 125 days instead of 155 days in the case of existing popular variety, Pusa-44.
