Rice Varieties “Kirti ” and “Madhura “, developed by Mavanji Pawar, an innovative tribal farmer from Jawhar, Palghar District of Maharashtra, have been recognised and registered under Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmer’s Rights (PPV &FRA), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmer Welfare, Government of India. “Kirti” variety is a short, bold and reddish-coloured upland rice which matures at 110-115 days, blast resistant and boasting of a grain yield of 10-15 quintals per acre. “Madhura“ variety is a long and slender with good swelling quality, white-coloured upland rice which matures at 110-115 days, water-stress tolerant and with a grain yield of 17-20 quintals per acre.
Kirti Rice Variety
Madhura Rice Variety
This innovative rice breeder had developed another upland rice variety – “Kamal” which was registered under PPV &FRA in the year 2022. This unassuming conservationist, a recipient of the Government of India-awarded ‘Plant Genome Saviour Farmer’ award 2012-13 also shared his experiences in rice breeding and conservation at the C-20 Conference held at Palghar in May 2023. Mavanji is closely associated with BAIF and enjoys imparting hands-on training and guiding other farmers in conservation and protection of crop cultivar diversity under the Agro-biodiversity conservation programme being implemented by BAIF as a nature-positive initiative.
