OAR@ICRISATMorphological Characteristics of ICRISAT-bred Pearl Millet Hybrid Seed Parents (2005-2018)S KGuptaauthorSPatilauthorMBoratkarauthorMPujarauthorPearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L) R. Br.) is a major warm-season nutri-cereal grown on ~34 million ha across the world with the majority of area (>95%) in the arid and semi-arid tropical (SAT) regions of Asia (~11 million ha) and Africa (~22 million ha) (FAO, 2020). India is the largest producer with an average production of 9.35 million tonnes and productivity of 1391 kg ha-1 occupying an area of 7.41 million ha (Directorate of Millets Development, 2021-22). It is a highly cross-pollinated crop with an outcrossing rate of more than 85%. The protogynous flowering and wind-borne pollination favor cross-pollination, making open-pollinated varieties (OPVs) as the natural cultivar state of this crop. However, OPVs, are not amenable to achieving as much heterozygosity and the consequent heterosis as possible in single-cross hybrids. Furthermore, OPVs are highly heterogeneous and hence morphologically more variable than single-cross hybrids. It has been observed that single-cross hybrids generally give 20-30% more grain yield than OPVs (Rai et al. 2006). Based on these considerations, and with the availability of a commercially exploitable cytoplasmic-nuclear male sterility (CMS), the National Agricultural Research System (NARS) in India took the first significant step in the world to embark on grain hybrid development. With the rapid growth of vibrant seed industry, pearl millet research in India, both in the private and the public sector, is now almost all directed towards hybrid breeding. In alignment with the regional priority in Asia region, ICRISAT’s pearl millet improvement research at Patancheru plays a pivotal role in developing diverse range of improved breeding lines and potential hybrid parents, leaving the development, testing and release of hybrids to the NARS and the private sector.....Pearl Millet2022-09-30ICRISAT, Patancheru, Telangana, IndiaMonograph

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