0. Research advances in Pulses
IMC, Mumbai
19th November, 2015

1. Population of the Country is expected to exceed 169 cr by 2050
Rate of growth of population will decline from 1.25% to 0.55 %

2. Pulses– projected consumption demand expected to exceed 32 million Mt from current 23 million Mt
Based on the ICMR recommendation of 52 gm per capita per day

3. India : Largest global importer of Pulses
India accounts for 35% of the global area under Pulses producing about 27% of the global volume
Production: Million tonnes (39% being chickpea)
Consumption: Million tonnes
Imports: Million tonnes
Import value : about 2.3 Bn US$ (~ Rs Cr)
Production is slow to grow and the consumption is increasing

4. Productivity of pulses in India is amongst the lowest

5. Pulse / Year 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 Pigeon pea 3.02 3.17 2.75
Pigeon pea and Chickpea account for about 65% of the total pulses produced in the country
Pulse / Year
Pigeon pea
3.02
3.17
2.75
Chick pea
8.83
9.53
8.28
Moong
1.18
1.61
1.39
Urad
1.94
1.70
others
3.32
3.78
4.6
Total
18.34
19.78
18.43
Figs. Of production in Million Mt

6. Pigeonpea

7. Pigeon pea area, production and productivity 2012-13
Country
Area (ha)
Production (Tons)
Yield (Kg/ha)
World
62,31,862
46,79,936
7510
India
46,50,000
30,22,700
6500
Myanmar
6,50,000
8,00,000
12308
Tanzania
2,87,182
2,47,387
8614
Malawi
2,17,068
2,87,983
13267
Kenya
1,44,218
73,183
5074
Source:

8. Indian Scenario Area : 3.38 m ha Production : 2.75 m t
Productivity : kg/ha
Major states in India :
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat
Source:

9. Advances made for hybridization
Search of male-sterility system
First Genetic Male-sterile (GMS) line developed
First GMS based hybrid ICPH 8 was released
Cytoplasmic-genetic male-sterility systems (CMS)
At ICRISAT, three cytoplasm sources are available

10. Cytoplasm sources A2 A1 A4 C. scarabaeoides C. cajanifolius
C. sericeus

11. Mahyco’s contribution in Hybrid Pigeonpea
First consortia partner with ICRISAT to fund program
A4 CMS system is named as Dr. Barwale CMS system
Tested hybrids with medium duration maturity

12. Bottlenecks with Hybrid Pigeonpea
Stability of the CMS system
Heterosis range on farmers field
Fertility restorer availability
Reduced honey bee activity due to chemicals

13. Pigeonpea - Major causes for yield losses
Pod borer complex %
Wilt %
Sterility mosaic %
Pod fly complex %

14. Institutes working on Pigeonpea
ICRISAT – Hybrids and transgenic
IIPR – Hybrids and varieties
National institutes and Universities – Stability of CMS / new sources
Private organizations – Hybrids / varieties

15. Standard heterosis (%)
List of promising hybrids developed by ICRISAT
Sr. no
ICPH no
Yield (kg/ha)
Standard heterosis (%) 1
3371
3013 62 2
3491
2919 57 3
3497
2686 44 4
3481
2637 41 5
3494
2596 39 6
2740
2900 7
3762
3000 8
2671
2509 37 9
Check
1864 -
SEm
± 205.7
Mean
2448.1
CV (%)
11.9
Source: Saxena 2015: Indian J. Genet., 75(3):

16. Chickpea

17. Chickpea area, production and productivity 2012-13
Country
Area (ha)
Production (Tons)
Yield (Kg/ha)
World
1,35,70,375
1,31,18,699
9667
India
96,00,000
88,32,500
9201
Pakistan
9,91,951
7,51,223
7573
Australia
5,73,600
8,13,300
14179
Iran
5,50,000
2,95,000
5364
Turkey
4,23,557
5,06,000
11946
Source:

18. Chickpea - Major causes for yield losses
Pod borer 10-90%
Wilt/root rot 20-25%
Source: NCIPM

19. Bt Chickpea can help us reduce growing import dependence in Pulses
Extensive pod damage on non-Bt plants with late instar H. armigera larvae
Effective control on Bt plants

20. Rationale for Bt Chickpea
India is the largest producer of chickpea in the world and accounts for more than 60 % of the area harvested.
India imports about 9.5 lakh (2014) tonnes of chickpea
The area under chickpea occupies about 39% of the total pulses consumed in India.
Lepidopteran insect Helicoverpa armigera or pod borer is the most devastating insect pest of chickpea and may account up to 40% of yield losses and losses of 100% has also been reported.
Helicoverpa is difficult to control because of its high fecundity, migratory behaviour, high adaptation to various climatic conditions and development of resistance against a range of insecticides.
Bt chickpea with cry2Aa gene provides an alternative approach for pod borer management.

21. Bt Chickpea Trials

22. Benefits of Bt Chickpea
Effectively protects the crop by control of Helicoverpa spp
Provides yield gains of 25-40%
Reduces costs on chemical application
Benefits about 4 million of small farmers growing Chickpea
Helps in Reduction of imports of pulses