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HIGH YIELDING DESI CHICKPEA (CICER ARIETINUM L.) VARIETY "NIFA-2005"

G. S. S. KHATTAK, M. ASHRAF*, ROSHAN ZAMIR AND I. SAEED

Abstract: The seeds of a local chickpea variety Pb-91 were irradiated at 0.30 KGy doses of gamma rays using ⁶⁰Co gamma cell and raised M₁ generation at Nuclear Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) during 1994-95. M₂ to M₆generations were raised along with parents and standard varieties from 1996 to 2000 and made selections on the basis of more pods and branches per plant, large seed size and good plant type. Performance of the line CMN-257 along with standard varieties was evaluated in various replicated yield trials and screened for diseases from 2000-2004. The proposal of the mutant CMN-257 was submitted for approval as commercial variety for NWFP to the Provincial Seed Council meeting held on 19^th September 2005 at NWFP Agricultural University, Peshawar. The Provincial Seed Council approved the mutant CMN-257 as a commercial variety under the name "NIFA-2005" for general cultivation in NWFP.
The major improvements in CMN-257 are manifested in the form of increase in seed size and erect plant type with stiff stem as compared to standards NIFA-88 and NIFA-95. The large seed size of CMN-257 is the main contributing factor towards increase in seed yield compared to NIFA-88 and NIFA-95. Erect plant type and stiff stem of CMN-257 helps in showing resistance to lodging, which reduces seed yield losses. Pods per plant, branches per plant, seeds per pod and protein contents of CMN-257 compare favorably with standards NIFA-88 and NIFA-95. CMN-257 has 16 % and 48 % high seed yield potential compared to the standard varieties NIFA-88 and NIFA-95. Its experimental seed yield was 1994 kg ha^-1. CMN-257 also showed tolerance to wilt/root rot and chickpea blight.

Nuclear Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Peshawar, NWFP.
* Department of Botany, Univesity of Faisalabad,,Faisalabad
Corresponding Author E-mail: gssktt@yahoo.com