Hyderabad-based agricultural university develops 19 new crop varieties

HYDERABAD: The Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University (ANGRAU) here has developed 19 new crop varieties, including rice, redgram, groundnut and sugarcane, which have high yielding potential.

"Different research institutions under the university have developed these 19 new crop (seeds) varieties including two hybrids which have been already released for this year, for the benefit of farmers," ANGRAU Director (research) G Lakshmikanth Reddy told PTI.

The new crop types, include six rice varieties, three groundnut, three sugarcane, two cotton and one each of redgram, field bean, castor (hybrid), safflower and jatropha, Reddy said.

The university has developed 371 crop varieties, including hybrids in last four decades. It has also developed 25 per cent rice varieties cultivated across the country at present.

"Besides these, technologies developed by ANGRAU are used by 85 per cent of Andhra Pradesh's farming community," an ANGRAU official said, adding as part of future plans, the university is working on developing new varieties, which are resistant to rising temperature.