Govt notifies seed varieties suitable for rabi season after 2 months of release by PM
- October 18, 2024
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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Govt notifies seed varieties suitable for rabi season after 2 months of release by PM
Sub : Geo
Sec: Eco Geo
Context:
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched 109 new seed varieties in August as part of a 100-day government initiative aimed at boosting agricultural productivity.
Details:
- Of these, 20 varieties are suitable for the rabi season, including wheat, gram (chana), barley, lentil, and safflower.
- However, these varieties were only officially notified on October 8, after the sowing season had already begun, potentially delaying their commercial cultivation by 2-3 years. Seed breeders need this time to develop and multiply the seeds before they are available for wide-scale use by farmers.
- Notable Rabi Seed Varieties:
- Wheat: HI 1665, HI 8840
- Barley: DWRB-219
- Gram (Chana): PG 265, NbeG 1267
- Lentil: PL 320, Kota Masoor 6, PSL 17
- Safflower: ISF-123-sel-15, ISF 300
- Berseem: JB 08-17
- Sugarcane: Co 17018, CoLk 16202, CoLk 16470, CoPb 17215
- Maize: APCH-2, APCH-3, IMH 230
- Grain Amaranth: RMA 120, GA 8 SKNA 1407
- The seeds were approved by the Central Sub-Committee on Crop Standards.
- These seeds were developed by various research centres under ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research) to increase farm productivity, with many of the varieties being high-yielding, climate-resilient, and biofortified.
Future reforms:
- The government is merging the existing Seednet portal with the recently launched SATHI portal (Seed Authentication, Traceability, and Holistic Inventory) to streamline information related to seed supply, demand, and regulatory matters. Additionally, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) have been tasked with educating farmers monthly about the benefits of these new varieties to ensure awareness and increased adoption.
SATHI portal:
- SATHI, or Seed Authentication, Traceability & Holistic Inventory, strives to create a nurturing digital environment.
- It is an initiative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Govt. of India.
- It aims to oversee seed production, ensure quality certification, and manage distribution with utmost care.
- The core objective is to offer complete traceability of seeds from their inception to the hands of farmers across successive generations.
Salient features:
- GIS reports based on the Bharat Map Interface
- Provision of wallet service
- Offline-friendly and device-agnostic mobile application
- Quality inspection module for the quality check of the inspection process
- System-generated sample slip on processed verification data
- Online forwarding of the samples to the seed testing laboratory
- Issuing of tag certificate based on digital tag register
Services offered:
- Registration of Seed Producing Agencies: Apply for registration or check the status of Seed Producing Agency under Seed Certification Agencies for different state
- Registration of Seed Processing Plants: Apply for registration or check the status of Seed Processing Plants under Seed Certification Agencies for different state
- Seed Dealership License: Any business unit can apply or check the status for a Seed Dealership license to issuing authorities for different state
- Download Field Inspection Report: Can download the field inspection report uploaded by the quality inspector
- Trace Tag Number: Can trace the detailed seed information from source to destination with a quality certificate