Achievement

Sugarcane Micropropagation
• The section has developed cost effective sugarcane micro-propagation protocols for the 21
• Sugarcane varieties namely; Co 740, Co 7219, Co 86032, Co 8014, Co 8021, CoC671, VSI 434, VSI 435, CoVSI 9805, Co 94012, Co 95012, CoVSI03102, CoM0265, Co92005, MS10001, Co86002, CoJ64, Co238, and VSI08005(12121),Co0118,Co09057,Co15023.
• More than 20.71 million plantlets of different sugarcane varieties were produced and supplied as quality seeds to the sugar industry and sugarcane growers of Maharashtra State and adjoining States like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Goa.
• Sugar industry and sugarcane growers are convinced for the use of tissue cultured sugarcane plantlets for increasing the sugarcane and sugar productivity. This has resulted in increasing the demand for the plantlets from the sugar industry as well as sugarcane growers.
• It has been observed that the use of planting material obtained from micro propagated sugarcane plantlets results in increasing sugarcane yield to the tune of 30-35%.
• A special mention of this achievement was made by the former President of India, Dr. Abdul Kalam in his address to the nation on the eve of Independence Day and subsequently in a prize giving ceremony.
Development of VSI 434 Sugarcane variety
VSI 434 an extra early maturing (11.50% sugar recovery at 9 month age), high yielding and drought tolerant variety have been released for commercial cultivation in the Year 2012. Sugarcane variety VSI 434 have the ability of maintaining high sugar recovery from 10th to 16th month of age. It is found that it gives 1.5 units more sugar recovery as compared to existing varieties of the same age. In addition 11 genotypes are under field evaluation for for different agronomic traits.

VASANT URJA

Vasant Urja is a chitin derivative based biopolymer developed by VSI Pune and BARC, Mumbai for the application in sugarcane. It has been irradiated with Electron Beam radiations to obtain its nanoparticles. Irradiation increases its efficacy and water solubility. It is primarily used as biostimulator.
Vasant urja has been tested at multilocation field trials at different sugar mills and at Central Sugarcane Research Station, Padegaon and recommended by JOINT- AGRESCO-2018 for improving sugarcane yield and sugar production. Apart from yield improvement in sugarcane it has shown excellent elicitor properties for inducing drought/salt/cold tolerance and even in helping crop coming out from flood tolerance.