Abstract
Importance of rice in agrarian economy of India is enormous. In order to meet demand of this staple crop for increasing population, productivity enhancement is a key research and development agenda. Improving seed replacement rate is widely held as a critical area to boost rice productivity in the country. This study based on secondary data revealed merely sowing quality seeds may not result in desired level of yield increase unless quality seeds of a good and appropriate variety is sown. Punjab, with its 38% SRR, registers 3.97 ton per ha yield whereas it is just 1.51 ton per ha in Chattisgarh where SRR is 44%. There are many varieties, quite older than stipulated 10 years, that are largely indented and grown due to lack of substitutes and poor varietal awareness. Because of this slow varietal awareness and replacement, rice yield still stagnates despite seeds are of assured quality. This shows varietal replacement rate is as important as seed replacement rate. The available studies also indicate that current seed system further needs to rationalize variety selection, production and multiplication of breeder seeds for ensuring seed security of farmers and this should be supplemented by measures taken to promote varietal promotion and replacement, quality seed production interventions at farmers’ level, and decentralized seed production system.
Highlights
As a rice eating country of 1.3 billon population, growing at 1.01% annually (Anonymous, 2019a), India needs secured supply of rice to maintain self-sufficiency in its food security mission
Per capita rice availability in the country increased from 58 kg to 68.8 kg during the period of 1951 to 2009 (Rao, 2015)
What a good variety denotes? Practically speaking, a variety should not be more than 10 years old, which is suitable and recommended for a specific rice ecology
Summary
As a rice eating country of 1.3 billon population, growing at 1.01% annually (Anonymous, 2019a), India needs secured supply of rice to maintain self-sufficiency in its food security mission. Quality seed is a critical input for yield stabilization and productivity enhancement in many food crops like rice. Many of the ongoing productivity enhancement programs are obsessed with SRR, and insufficient efforts are directed to replace older varieties This is evident from the varieties (breeder seeds) indented by different states of India. Susceptibility to diseases and pests, and some unwanted traits start developing in a variety if cultivated after 10 years time For this obvious reason, even though quality seeds of these older varieties are used, desired yield may not be realised. Breeder seeds indented for production in 201415 was sufficient to meet this demand of 2.2 million tons certified seed requirement (Anonymous, 2019c). Genetic identity is a challenge for older varieties for which DNA fingerprinting has not been done during release of the variety
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