Wheat variety PBW 826 retains top spot in grain yield at national level: PAU
Punjab Agricultural University’s PBW 826 wheat has again topped national grain-yield rankings in the 2024-25 All India Coordinated Varietal Trials under irrigated, timely-sown conditions. Averaging 65.7 q/ha in the North Western Plains Zone and 53.6 q/ha in the North Eastern Plains Zone, it outperformed competitors, proving high yield, climate resilience, and economic benefits.
Developed by the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), PBW 826 wheat variety has again been ranked “first for grain yield at the national level” across the entire north India in the All India Coordinated Varietal Trials conducted during the 2024-25 crop season under irrigated timely sown conditions, according to a PAU statement.
The trial results were shared at the All India Wheat Research Workers Meeting held recently at RVS Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. The wheat variety PBW 826 repeated its historic rare distinction of standing first for grain yield in two major wheat zones of India — the North Western Plains Zone (NWPZ) and the North Eastern Plains Zone (NEPZ) of India, PAU said.
These trials were conducted under the aegis of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi, wherein the best candidate varieties developed by various wheat breeding programmes across the country, including ICAR Research Institutes, 29 state agricultural universities and even private sector companies, are nominated, evaluated for three years and subsequently released.
The PBW 826 variety had earlier ranked first for three consecutive years, leading to its release for the entire NWPZ and NEPZ in 2022, PAU said.
The NWPZ of India comprises Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan (excluding Kota and Udaipur division), Western Uttar Pradesh (except Jhansi division), Jammu and Kathua districts of Jammu & Kashmir, Paonta Valley and Una district of Himachal Pradesh, and tarai region of Uttarakhand.
The NEPZ of India comprises Eastern UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Assam and plains of the northeastern states.
During 2024-25, according to PAU, the Advanced Varietal Trial for irrigated timely sown conditions of the NWPZ consisting of 17 best wheat varieties currently available across India was conducted at 13 locations situated in seven states. In these trials, PBW 826 ranked first for grain yield, recording an average of 65.7 q/ha and significantly outperforming other recently released or popular competitors like DBW 222 (64.4 q/ha), HD 3386 (64.0 q/ha) and HD 3086 (59.9 q/ha).
Similarly, the Advanced Varietal Trial for irrigated timely sown conditions of NEPZ consisting of 14 best wheat varieties was conducted at 14 locations in five different states. In these trials, PBW 826 ranked first for grain yield, recording an average of 53.6 q/ha and significantly outperforming other recently released or popular competitors like DBW 187 (51.6 q/ha) and HD 3086 (49.5 q/ha).
“Thus, the variety PBW 826 has reaffirmed its supremacy at the national level, proving it to be the highest yielding wheat variety available in India as on date for irrigated timely sown conditions of both NWPZ and NEPZ,” the PAU statement said.
Congratulating the wheat scientists, PAU Vice-Chancellor Dr Satbir Singh Gosal said, “The exemplary performance of PBW 826 in national competitions is a matter of great pride and honour for PAU. This outstanding performance over several years and across wide geographical area is a testimony to climate resilience of PBW 826 wherein it has given high grain yield even under drastic aberrations in climatic conditions.”
Dr AS Dhatt, Director of Research, said since its release in 2022, PBW 826 has been well-received by farmers across several states and its quick adoption can be judged from the seed demand at the national level. “In a short span of time, PBW 826 has been featured among the list of top 10 most popular wheat varieties in India from amongst 142 varieties in seed chain during 2024-25 based on the breeder seed indent and production finalised and compiled by the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India. At the state level also, the variety PBW 826 released in 2022 for the cultivation in Punjab under irrigated timely sown conditions has been widely adopted by the farmers of the state and became the most popular variety occupying about 40 per cent of wheat area in the state during the 2024-25 crop season,” Dr Dhatt added.
Divulging the economics of this variety, Dr VS Sohu, in charge of the wheat section, said, “The fiscal benefits to Punjab farmers alone accrued to the cultivation of PBW 826 have been estimated to be around Rs 1,280 crore for 2024-25 only. Besides its high and stable yielding ability and climate resilience, PBW 826 is slightly shorter duration variety maturing in about 148 days under irrigated, timely sown conditions of Punjab. With a plant height of 100 cm, it is slightly shorter than most recent releases.”
“PBW 826 has heavier grains and a higher hectolitre weight. The variety gives an average grain yield of 24 quintals per acre, with many farmers reporting 26-28 quintals and in exceptional cases even higher. It is moderately resistant to yellow and brown rust diseases. Seed of PBW 826 is in great demand and the area under this variety is likely to expand further,” Dr Sohu added.
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Source : The Indian Express
