CAZRI Moth Bean Varieties Demonstrate Resilience During El Niño Drought Conditions
The ICAR–Central Arid Zone Research Institute (CAZRI), Jodhpur, has developed four moth bean varieties—CAZRI Moth-4, CAZRI Moth-5, CAZRI Moth-6, and CAZRI Moth-7—specifically bred for the harsh arid conditions of western Rajasthan where moth bean is cultivated over nearly 10 lakh hectares with typically low productivity of around 350 kg per hectare due to low, erratic rainfall of 150–250 mm and prolonged dry spells.
During the El Niño year of Kharif 2026, these varieties demonstrated remarkable resilience by withstanding a 35-day dry spell from 3 August to 7 September 2026. The crop growth period from 10 July to 2 September 2026 saw cumulative pan evaporation of approximately 317 mm. Rainfall ceased after 3 August, resulting in a prolonged rainless period during critical reproductive stages. Surface soil moisture at 0–10 cm depth dropped from 15–16% (v/v) after the last significant rainfall of 86 mm on 2 August to just 5–6% during the dry spell, while subsurface moisture at 10–40 cm declined from 23% to 16%.
Despite these extreme conditions, the varieties maintained green appearance, good growth, and profuse pod development at around 55 days after sowing. This performance was attributed to their developmental plasticity, beginning flowering at approximately 30 days after sowing and adjusting growth and maturity according to soil moisture availability. The resilience was supported by specific crop management practices including timely July sowing with monsoon onset, optimum plant geometry of 45 × 10 cm, mechanical interculture operations at 20 days after sowing for moisture conservation, and mechanical weed management with manual spot weeding.
The experimental fields had poor fertility conditions with organic carbon content of 0.13–0.18%, soil pH of 7.9–8.1, available nitrogen of 90–100 kg per hectare, available phosphorus of 10–15 kg per hectare, and available potassium of 250–260 kg per hectare.
Seed multiplication efforts are currently underway with 7 hectares at the CAZRI Research Farm dedicated to producing 23.32 quintals of seed to meet 2026 requirements through the Saathi Portal, following 63.2 quintals indented in 2025. One quintal of breeder seed can produce 1,000–1,400 quintals of certified seed, potentially facilitating cultivation over approximately 10,000 hectares. At 50% of this potential, wider adoption could cover around 25% of Rajasthan's total moth bean area. Multiplication is being handled by Rajasthan State Seeds Corporation, National Seeds Corporation, and selected private players.
Dr. M. L. Jat, Secretary of Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) and Director General of ICAR, emphasized that these climate-resilient varieties could make the Thar Desert more prosperous and create new income opportunities while contributing to pulse self-reliance. He noted that genetic improvement is a crucial component of climate-resilient agriculture but stressed that proper management practices are essential for varieties to realize their genetic potential under stress conditions.