Name : Hukam Singh Lodha
District & State : Bharatpur, Rajasthan
Category : Agricultural (General)
Award : National
Award Function : 8th National Grassroots Innovation Awards
Award Year : 2015
- Innovator Profile
- Innovation Description
- Salient Features
Scout: Direct
Sixty two years old Hukam Singh, a progressive farmer from Bharatpur, has developed a high yielding improved variety of mustard through natural hybridization. The variety has high oil content as well.
Background
After completing his class 10th studies, Hukam Singh started traditional farming using bullocks and conventional farming tools in his father’s farm. After a few years, when he trained at the Farmers’ training Center, Bharatpur, his interest in modern agricultural techniques and tools started to grow. He then started visiting various exhibitions, agricultural fairs and training centers. His interest in developing an improved variety of mustard developed after one such visit to Mustard Research Center, Bharatpur. He is known as an innovative and progressive farmer in his village and near about. Apart from his wife and two daughters, he has four sons in his family and earns his livelihood primarily through agricultural work.
Genesis
Hukam Singh was growing locally popular mustard (Brassica juncea) variety in his field, which had small seeds, yellow flowers and jointed siliqua. He was also growing sengri (Raphanus sativus), which had bold seeds, robust stem and siliqua. The mustard variety was tolerant to water logging and had good plant height with appressed siliqua angle.
In 2005, he sowed the seeds of both the crops in alternate rows. He then harvested seeds from plants selected on the basis of plant height, tolerance to water logging, pod shattering and alternaria leaf blight disease for the next sowing. He continued the process for three years. In 2010, he found that the desirable characters were stable. Sitara Sringar thus got developed as a result of natural hybridization. Hukam Singh started multiplying the seeds in sufficient quantity thereafter. He has now distributed the seeds to a number of farmers of Bharatpur, Dholpur, Alwar and Dausa districts of Rajasthan. The variety is well known for its performance in Bharatpur and surrounding region.
http://nif.org.in/innovation/sitara-sringar-an-improved-mustard-variety/778