Rice is India’s largest crop and is grown in a variety of agro-climatic conditions, it is responsible for 50% of crop-related methane emissions & approx 40% of water consumption in agri leading to depleting groundwater levels & warming, soil degradation due to water runoff, residue management and intensive manual labour are other major challenges in traditional rice cultivation. DSR has the potential to address these challenges however pre-requisite to successful transformation is better yield & increased return on investment for farmers, they need confidence that their plants will establish well, and effectively manage weeds, disease & pests to produce crops that offer at par or higher yields than transplanted cultivation methods.
To successfully drive this transition from transplanted puddled rice to DSR with minimum fear and risk, allowing farmers to experience first-hand convenience and an equivalent or higher return on investment would require the agri-input industry to closely work with the Government of India, State Governments, mechanisation, millers.
Realizing this Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) will be organizing a conference on DSR for sustainable & profitable rice production at The Park, Connaught Place, New Delhi on March 15, 2024.
Points of Discussion:
How remunerative is DSR for farmers vis-à-vis traditional rice cultivation
Challenges in the adoption of DSR, Training & capacity building of farmers
Developing an ecosystem to encourage DSR adoption
Synergies between center & state government policies
Agenda of Conference
10:00-10:10 hrs: Opening remarks & context setting- Ajai Rana, Chairman, FSII and Managing Director & CEO, Savannah Seeds
10:10-10:20 hrs: Seed Industry perspective on sustainable rice production- Anuja Kadian, Director, FSII & Asia Pacific Government Affairs, Director, Corteva Agriscience
10:20-10:30 hrs: Special address by Guest of Honor- Prof Vijay Paul Sharma, Chairman, Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices
10:30-10:40 hrs: Special address by S Jaswant Singh, Director - Agriculture, Punjab
10:40 hrs: Launch of FSII-Sathguru Report on DSR
10:40-10:50 hrs: Brief Summary of Report Dr K V Satyanarayana, Vice President – Lifesciences Advisory Group, Sathguru Management Consultants
10:50-11:05 hrs: Special address by Chief Guest Dr A K Singh, Director, Indian Agricultural Research Institute
11:05-11:15 hrs: Closing remarks & Vote of Thanks, Rajvir Rathi, Vice Chairman, FSII & Head – Agricultural Policy & Stakeholder Affairs, Bayer CropScience
Session 1: DSR Genetics & Breeding
The benefits of DSR are well known as it is resource efficient, environment & soil friendly, has higher yields & less manpower requirement because of the shift from flooded to direct seeding system which leads to variation in water, tillage, nutrient, the crop faces challenges of weeds, panicle sterility, pest & diseases attacks, lodging. To overcome these challenges new varieties of seeds should be herbicide tolerant & treated with fungicides to manage soil-borne diseases.
Points of Discussion:
Availability of seed varieties suitable for DSR
Drought tolerance
Plant phenotype
11:30-12:30 hrs: Presentation & Session Moderator- Dr R Mahender Kumar Principal Scientist & Head - Crop Production & Agronomy Indian Institute of Rice Research
Distinguished Panellists:
Dr T K Das, Professor & Principal Scientist, Indian Agricultural Research Institute
Dr Veeresh RP Gowda, Head – DSR Breeding, Bayer CropScience
Dr Mahantesh Gangashetti, APSI EZ & New Initiatives Lea, Corteva AgriScience
Dr R S Mahala, President Research – Field Crops, Seedworks International Ltd
Ramanathan Vairamani, Chief - Technology & Innovation, Rallis India
Session 2: Perspective from Ecosystem Stakeholders for Widespread & Successful Adoption of DSR
DSR has proved to be an alternative to unsustainable water-intensive transplanted rice world-over, but a heavy infestation of a variety of weed species leads to more competition for nutrients, water & other valuable resources which creates yield drag and increases in cost of cultivation due to regular sprays & weed management and limits the large-scale adoption of DSR cultivation. Herbicide-tolerant trait can provide a solution in this situation, associated support of crop care and mechanisation is necessary for the widescale adoption of DSR.
Points of Discussion:
Integrated Weed, Pest & Disease Management
Machinery for planting & harvesting
Biotechnology
12:45-13:45 hrs: Presentation & Session Moderator- Dr Panneerselvam Peramaiyan Principal Scientist International Rice Research Institute
Distinguished Panellists:
Manoj Mahuli, Director – Sales, Savannah Seeds Pvt Ltd
Sahin Ozkan, CEO, ADAMA India
Dr Nilanjan Sanyal, Head - R&D South Asia, BASF India Ltd
Ravindra Kumar Agrawal, Chairman, KisanKraft Ltd
Avinash Kumar, Chairman, Anuj Kisan Producer Company Ltd
Session 3: Role of Policy & Market Dynamics in Encouraging Adoption of DSR
The majority of rice farmers constantly struggle with issues of water availability and cultivation costs. Rice is the staple food for the population and has good export potential at the same time this crop is resource-intensive and has a severe impact on the environment.
DSR promises to address these challenges however this requires the support of government policies and procurement systems to encourage farmers to switch from traditional rice cultivation methods to DSR. For example, preferential procurement and/or higher MSP for DSR can galvanize adoption. The rice milling industry also needs capital & policy support for processing DSR varieties. A green credit system can also be explored to promote DSR.
Points of Discussion:
Policy priority for DSR
Revisiting paddy procurement policy holistically
Support for the Paddy processing industry
14:45-15:45 hrs: Session Moderator- Ram Kaundinya, Advisor, Federation of Seed Industry of India
Distinguished Panelists:
Dr Tanushri Kaul, Group Leader - Nutritional Improvement of Crops, International Centre for Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology
Dr Makhan Singh Bhullar, Director Extension, Punjab Agricultural University
Umang Agarwal, Head Carbon, Grow Indigo
Nathi Ram Gupta, President, All India Rice Exporters Association
Srivatsa Sreenivasarao, Co-Founder & CEO, TraceX Technologies
Source: FSII