Himachal Pradesh's farm university, CSKHPKV, and the rice-seed company Savannah Seeds have announced results from a multi-year study showing that direct-seeded SAVA-134 FullPage rice can make rice production more climate-smart and resource-efficient. Compared with conventional transplanted rice, the approach reduced methane emissions by nearly 90%, delivered the highest water productivity, improved soil health and showed the greatest potential for generating carbon credits.

The study, 'Popularization of Direct-Seeded Rice Technology for Climate Change Adaptation by Reducing GHG Emissions and Acquiring Carbon Credit', was carried out in two major rice-growing regions of the state. Led by Dr Dhanbir Singh, assistant soil chemist in the department of soil science at CSKHPKV Palampur, and supported by Savannah Seeds, it compared transplanted with direct-seeded rice over several seasons on yield, water use, greenhouse-gas emissions and soil health.

Among the direct-seeded treatments, SAVA-134 FullPage gave the strongest overall balance of productivity, resource efficiency and environmental performance, keeping yields strong while using fewer resources and leaving a significantly smaller carbon footprint. Rice is grown on more than 164 million hectares and feeds more than half the world's people; Asia produces about 90% of it, much of it in transplanted, flooded systems that need heavy labour and water and add significantly to methane emissions.

'Our goal was to evaluate practical solutions that can help farmers improve productivity while reducing environmental impact,' Dr Singh said. 'The results demonstrate that direct-seeded rice can play an important role in advancing more climate-smart and resource-efficient rice production systems.' Dr Vinod Sharma, director of research at CSKHPKV Palampur, called the work a strong example of a public–private partnership on climate-resilient farming.

'Rice farmers are being asked to produce more food with fewer resources while also reducing environmental impacts,' said Ajai Rana, chief executive and managing director of Savannah Seeds. 'This research demonstrates that innovation in crop genetics and production practices can help achieve both goals.'

Source: AgroSpectrum