Monitoring Visit of the ICAR-IIOR AICRP on Castor Team to RARS

The Monitoring Team of the All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Castor from ICAR–Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research (ICAR-IIOR) visited the Regional Agricultural Research Station (RARS), Palem, to review the progress of ongoing research trials under the project. The team was led by Dr. Senthilvel Senapathy, Principal Scientist (Plant Breeding) and Principal Investigator (PI), AICRP on Castor. The other members included Dr. G. Suresh, Principal Scientist (Agronomy) and Head, Dr. M. Santha Lakshmi Prasad, Principal Scientist (Plant Pathology) and Head, Dr. P. Duraimurugan, Principal Scientist (Entomology); Yamanura, Scientist (Junior Plant Breeding) and Dr. D. Shashibhushan, Principal Scientist (Oilseeds).

Dr. L. Krishna, Associate Director of Research, RARS, Palem, briefed the monitoring team on the history and development of the Castor Scheme at RARS, Palem, highlighting the castor varieties and hybrids developed by the station. Subsequently, the AICRP on Castor team presented the status of ongoing experiments across different disciplines, outlining the progress and achievements of the research trials.

The team inspected the ongoing field trials under Plant Breeding, Agronomy, Entomology and Plant Pathology, assessing experimental layouts, crop growth and development, varietal performance, agronomic practices, insect pest incidence and disease occurrence. The trials were reviewed for implementation in accordance with the approved technical programme, with emphasis on maintaining experimental protocols, timely data recording and effective management of biotic and abiotic stresses.

The AICRP on Castor trials at RARS, Palem, are being managed by Dr. G. Eswara Reddy, Scientist (Plant Breeding); Mrs. K. Mamatha, Scientist (Agronomy); Mrs. G. Madhuri, Scientist (Entomology) and Dr. V. Divya Rani, Scientist (Plant Pathology). The scientists are actively involved in conducting experiments, maintaining field trials and recording observations as per the prescribed technical programme.

As part of the Farmers’ Field Demonstrations (FLDs) visit, the monitoring team also visited Zamisthapur village, Telkapally Mandal, Nagarkurnool District, to assess the performance of castor demonstrations in farmers’ fields and observe crop growth and field-level implementation of recommended practices.

The monitoring team expressed satisfaction with the healthy crop growth and overall progress of the research trials at RARS, Palem, as well as the performance of the FLDs at Zamisthapur village. The team appreciated the efforts of the RARS, Palem team in implementing the AICRP on Castor technical programme and promoting improved castor production practices among farmers.