No immediate threat of rust disease to Indian wheat: scientist

Says the country is expected to produce a record 100 million tonnes in 2015

India does not face any immediate threat of Ug99 rust disease to its wheat crop and the country is expected to produce a record 100 million tonnes in 2015, leading wheat scientist Ronnie Coffman said today.
     
'Ug99' is a devastating strain of black wheat stem rust fungus. The wind-blown disease has capacity to affect the crop yield by over 70 per cent. It had recently emerged in Iran in 2009 and was contained with the use of resistant varieties.
     
Coffman, who has worked with Normal Borlaug -- the Father of the Green Revolution, said: "There is no immediate danger of Ug99 disease to India. However, its spread will depend predominantly on west-east air-flow pattern."

     

Races of Ug99 black stem rust could migrate via wind blowing from East Africa, where the deadly disease was first detected, and move through wheat belt of the Middle East and into the bread baskets of South Asia, he told reporters.
     
The air-flow pattern is required to be monitored on a regular basis and the surveillance system is in place in most countries including India. Simultaneously, the research is being done to develop rust resistant varieties, he added.
     
The challenges in protecting wheat crop from stem rust and yellow rust diseases would be discussed at a workshop during a four-day workshop commencing August 19 here. The workshop is organised by the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative (BGRI) and Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).

     
"We are closer to our goal of protecting global wheat crop from rust disease but the vast wheat growing region that stretches across North Africa all the way to India and China is still vulnerable," said Coffman, also a Vice-Chair of BGRI, funded by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and UK's Department of International Development.
     
On India's wheat production, he told PTI separately: "The production has been in the range of 92-95 million tonnes in the last years. This will sustain. It could cross the 100 million tonnes mark not this year but in 2014-15."
     

Higher production could be achieved on adoption of improved varieties and better agronomical practices, he added.
     
In India, wheat crop suffers from yellow rust fungal disease which is not catastrophic. Last year, it affected the crop planted in three million hectare but there was no crop loss, said Karnal-based Directorate of Wheat Research (DWR) Project Director Indu Sharam.
     
She said the BGRI will also commemorate 50th anniversary of Norman Borlaug's introduction of high-yielding wheat varieties in India. He visited India in 1963 when wheat production was only 12 million tonnes.
     
Now, the country's wheat production has increased to 92.46 million tonnes in 2012-13 crop year (July-June).