8 research outputs found
Conventional and Molecular Breeding Approaches for Biofortification of Pearl Millet
Pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.] is an essential diet of more than 90
million people in the semi-arid tropics of the world where droughts and low fertility
of soils cause frequent failures of other crops. It is an important nutri-rich grain
cereal in the drier regions of the world grown on 26 mha by millions of farmers
(IFAD 1999; Yadav and Rai 2013). This makes pearl millet the sixth most important
crop in the world and fourth most important food crop of the India, next to rice,
wheat, and maize with annual cultivation over an area of ~8 mha. Pearl millet is also
primary food crop in sub-Saharan Africa and is grown on 15 mha (Yadav and Rai
2013). The significant increase in productivity of pearl millet in India is attributed
to development and adoption of hybrids of early to medium duration maturity. More
than 120 diverse hybrids/varieties have been released till date for various production
environments. The heterosis breeding and improved crop management technologies
increased productivity substantially achieving higher increased production of
9.80 mt in 2016–2017 from 2.60 mt in 1950–1951 in spite of declined of area under
the crop by 20–30% over last two decades (Yadav et al. 2012)
Production potential of plateau agriculture and food sufficiency in the Kandhamal district of Orissa
Nutrient diversity in 251 Indian rice germplasms and dietary nutrient supply through rice in rice based diets
Agriculture’s role in the Indian enigma: help or hindrance to the crisis of undernutrition?
In recent decades India has achieved one of the fastest economic growth rates in the world, yet its progress against both child and adult undernutrition has been sluggish at best. While this Indian variant of the so-called Asian enigma presents many puzzles, one of the puzzles pertains to agriculture's role. Many researchers and policymakers have high expectations of agriculture's potential to reduce undernutrition, despite a lack of substantive evidence. In this paper we assess this tenuous evidence base by exploring two key channels by which agricultural production conditions can influence nutritional outomes: a food consumption pathway and a maternal employment-time use pathway. We conclude with an appraisal of some possible entry points for pro-nutrition agricultural policies