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Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa

In the imperial Gazetteer of India 1878, Pusa was recorded as a government estate of about 1350 acres in Darbhanba. It was acquired by East India Company for running a stud farm to supply better breed of horses mainly for the army. Frequent incidence of glanders disease (swelling of glands), mostly affecting the valuable imported bloodstock made the civil veterinary department to shift the entire stock out of Pusa. A British tobacco concern Beg Sutherland & co. got the estate on lease but it also left in 1897 abandoning the government estate of Pusa. Lord Mayo, The Viceroy and Governor General, had been repeatedly trying to get through his proposal for setting up a directorate general of Agriculture that would take care of the soil and its productivity, formulate newer techniques of cultivation, improve the quality of seeds and livestock and also arrange for imparting agricultural education. The government of India had invited a British expert. Dr. J. A. Voelcker who had submitted as report on the development of Indian agriculture. As a follow-up action, three experts in different fields were appointed for the first time during 1885 to 1895 namely, agricultural chemist (Dr. J. W. Leafer), cryptogamic botanist (Dr. R. A. Butler) and entomologist (Dr. H. Maxwell Lefroy) with headquarters at Dehradun (U.P.) in the forest Research Institute complex. Surprisingly, until now Pusa, which was destined to become the centre of agricultural revolution in the country, was lying as before an abandoned government estate. In 1898. Lord Curzon took over as the viceroy. A widely traveled person and an administrator, he salvaged out the earlier proposal and got London’s approval for the appointment of the inspector General of Agriculture to which the first incumbent Mr. J. Mollison (Dy. Director of Agriculture, Bombay) joined in 1901 with headquarters at Nagpur The then government of Bengal had mooted in 1902 a proposal to the centre for setting up a model cattle farm for improving the dilapidated condition of the livestock at Pusa estate where plenty of land, water and feed would be available, and with Mr. Mollison’s support this was accepted in principle. Around Pusa, there were many British planters and also an indigo research centre Dalsing Sarai (near Pusa). Mr. Mollison’s visits to this mini British kingdom and his strong recommendations. In favour of Pusa as the most ideal place for the Bengal government project obviously caught the attention for the viceroy.

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20221
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Subject: Agronomy × Author: KUMAR, PURUSHOTTAM × End date: 2022 × Start date: 2022 ×
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    ThesisItemOpen Access
    Effect of foliar application of different chemicals on growth, yield and quality of Black gram [Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper] under rainfed condition
    (DRPCAU, PUSA, 2022) KUMAR, PURUSHOTTAM; SINGH, HARENDRA
    A field experiment was performed at the “TCA., research farm of Dholi (Muzaffarpur), which is a unit of the Dr. RPCAU, Pusa (Samastipur), Bihar, during the Kharif season of 2021” to investigate the “Effect of foliar application of different chemicals on growth, yield and quality of Black gram [Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper] under rainfed condition”. The design used for making layout of experimental unit was RBD that was replicated three times, with ten treatments in each replication for a total of 30 plots. The experiment conducted with 10 treatments viz., Absolute Control (T1), Water spray (T2), ZnSO4 @ 0.5 % spray (T3), NPK (19- 19-19) @ 2 % spray (T4), Urea @ 2 % spray (T5), DAP @ 2 % spray (T6), Salicylic acid @ 100 ppm spray (T7), Potassium Nitrate @ 2 % spray (T8), Boron @ 0.25 % spray (T9), Potassium chloride @ 0.2 % spray(T10). In absolute control plot (T1) recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF) as well as foliar spray were absent. RDF were applied as basal dose in all the remaining 9 treatments as well as foliar spray of different chemicals were applied invariably at two critical times i.e., at pre-flowering and pod-initiation stage. The soil of the experimental field was alluvial (sandy loam) and calcareous by nature and low in fertility status having pH (8.44), EC (0.31) with organic carbon, available N, P2O5 and K2O content were 0.39 %, 190.35 kg ha-1, 21.34 kg ha-1, and 135.68 kg ha-1 respectively. Pant U-31, a prominent black gram variety popular among farmers, was sown on August 17 and harvested on November 10. All the treatments that were applied as foliar spray positively influenced the Black gram growth, yield and seed quality parameters. Nutrients applied directly on leaf increased plant height, leaf count plant-1, branch count plant-1, dry weight of plant, nodule number plant-1, CGR, number of pod plant-1, pod length, number of seed pod-1, among growth and yield-related parameters. Under foliar application of “NPK (19-19-19) @ 2 % spray at pre-flowering and pod- initiation (T4)” at 40, 60 DAS and at harvest, significantly higher plant height, leaf count, number of branches, dry weight of plant, CGR and number of nodules/plant were observed; however, it was encountered to be non-significant at 20 DAS as foliar application of nutrients applied at 33 and 53 DAS. The foliar spray of different treatments applied had a significant impact on the number of pod number plant-1, seed count pod-1 and the length of the pod. However, foliar chemicals had no appreciable impact on the weight of 100 seeds. At pre-flowering and pod-initiation stage, foliar treatment of “NPK (19-19-19) @ 2 % spray (T4)” resulted in significantly greater seed production and stover output. Different chemical administration to the foliage had no significant effect on harvest index. Foliar application of different treatments managed to achieve comparable seed quality parameters, where nitrogen and protein content in Black gram seed increased significantly in T6 (DAP @ 2 % spray) over absolute control and at par with remaining treatments besides that phosphorus content in black gram seed was found significantly higher in T6 (DAP @ 2 % spray) as compared to all the remaining treatments except treatment T4 that was found to be at par. “NPK (19-19-19) @ 2 % spray at pre-flowering and pod- initiation (T4)” reported noticeably higher gross return, net return, and B: C ratio.