CLEAN SEED PROGRAM - A joint collaboration of IORF and BCKV (W.B.)
CLEAN SEED PROGRAM - A Movements towards Climate Change Mitigation through Development of Organic Seed by Inhana Organic Research Foundation (IORF in collaboration with Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswa-vidyalaya The importance of quality and resilient seeds has increased many folds today as the basic but the critical input for sustainable agriculture especially in the backdrop of climate change. The high yielding seed varieties produced under high input conventional farming primarily lack the required resilience under the increasing biotic and abiotic stress, besides showing limited responses under low input sustainable farming. In this background, Inhana Organic Research Foundation (IORF) initiated a collaborative programme of ‘Organic Seed’ development with Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswa-vidyalaya in 2016, at Block Seed Farm, Canning (West Bengal). The objective of the program was to developed climate resilient seeds coined as ‘Clean Seed’ that will be responsive under low input production systems due to efficient resource utilization. And a comprehensive organic package of practice namely Inhana Rational Farming (IRF) Technology was adopted towards achieving the set objective. Paddy was the selected crop primarily because it forms the major crop of the state, but is also one of the most challenging crops with respect to climate change mitigation considering the high water and nitrogen usage and high GHG emission potential. Three prominent paddy varieties viz. Banskathi, Dudheswer and Lal- Minikit (WGL 20471) were selected for the programme. Quality testing of the ‘Clean Seed’ revealed that they easily passed the basic quality parameters under the Indian Seed Certification Standard (2013) as marked out for the Foundation Seeds. Comparative study of Seed viability, germination potential and seed vigor of Conventional seeds vis-a-vis Clean Seed showed 6.1 to 9.5% higher germination with up to 30.73 % higher germination velocity index in case of the latter. Most importantly seed vigour index, which depicts seed performance in field condition showed significantly higher value in case of ‘Clean Seed’ (upto 20.11 %) as compared to conventional seeds. Better climate resilience in case of ‘Clean Seed’ was indicated by the 14.42 to 27.59% lower electrical conductivity, indicative of the nonexistent membrane deterioration, resulting from either artificial or natural ageing. The quality traits in the seeds developed under ‘Clean Seed’ program might be due to specific and intensified plant health management under Inhana Rational Farming Technology.
CLEAN SEED PROGRAM - A Movements towards Climate Change Mitigation through Development of Organic Seed by Inhana Organic Research Foundation (IORF in collaboration with Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswa-vidyalaya The importance of quality and resilient seeds has increased many folds today as the basic but the critical input for sustainable agriculture especially in the backdrop of climate change. The high yielding seed varieties produced under high input conventional farming primarily lack the required resilience under the increasing biotic and abiotic stress, besides showing limited responses under low input sustainable farming. In this background, Inhana Organic Research Foundation (IORF) initiated a collaborative programme of ‘Organic Seed’ development with Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswa-vidyalaya in 2016, at Block Seed Farm, Canning (West Bengal). The objective of the program was to developed climate resilient seeds coined as ‘Clean Seed’ that will be responsive under low input production systems due to efficient resource utilization. And a comprehensive organic package of practice namely Inhana Rational Farming (IRF) Technology was adopted towards achieving the set objective. Paddy was the selected crop primarily because it forms the major crop of the state, but is also one of the most challenging crops with respect to climate change mitigation considering the high water and nitrogen usage and high GHG emission potential. Three prominent paddy varieties viz. Banskathi, Dudheswer and Lal- Minikit (WGL 20471) were selected for the programme. Quality testing of the ‘Clean Seed’ revealed that they easily passed the basic quality parameters under the Indian Seed Certification Standard (2013) as marked out for the Foundation Seeds. Comparative study of Seed viability, germination potential and seed vigor of Conventional seeds vis-a-vis Clean Seed showed 6.1 to 9.5% higher germination with up to 30.73 % higher germination velocity index in case of the latter. Most importantly seed vigour index, which depicts seed performance in field condition showed significantly higher value in case of ‘Clean Seed’ (upto 20.11 %) as compared to conventional seeds. Better climate resilience in case of ‘Clean Seed’ was indicated by the 14.42 to 27.59% lower electrical conductivity, indicative of the nonexistent membrane deterioration, resulting from either artificial or natural ageing. The quality traits in the seeds developed under ‘Clean Seed’ program might be due to specific and intensified plant health management under Inhana Rational Farming Technology.