DRR Dhan 79

Background:

Rice productivity in India is often constrained by the combined effects of biotic and abiotic stresses. Modern high yielding varieties frequently succumb to these stresses, leading to unstable yields particularly under rainfed and marginal environments. There exists a significant gap in the availability of high yielding varieties combining resistance/tolerance to both biotic and abiotic stresses. Moreover, many stress-resistant varieties underperform in terms of yield or grain quality, leading to limited famer adoption and poor market competitiveness, especially in regions, where consumer preference drives variety choice. Hence, there is an urgent need for development of a high yielding, multiple biotic and abiotic stress resistant/tolerant variety that performs well under both transplanted irrigated and rainfed conditions, while maintaining market-preferred grain characteristics.

DRR Dhan 79 is ideally suited for cultivation in both irrigated transplanted and rainfed ecologies, Collectively, the states of its release and notification, Odisha, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka account for over 15 MHa of rice cultivation. Even if DRR Dhan 79 captures 10-15% of this target area, it could benefit 1.5-2.0 million farmers stabilizing rice productivity in stress prone environments. Its large-scale adoption is expected to enhance yield stability, reduce pesticide dependency and expand marker opportunities for farmers across diverse rice ecosystems. Its dual advantage of stress tolerance and high yield also positions it well for commercial seed markets.

Technology Details:

To address these challenges, DRR Dhan 79 (IET 29859) has been developed through marker assisted selection (MAS) in the background of an elite cultivar ‘Krishna Hamsa’ involving multiple donors. The variety possesses Pi54 for blast resistance and Bph20, Bph21 for brown plant hopper (BPH) resistance. Additionally, it is also resistant to gallmidge and tolerant to drought stress. It is a semi dwarf, high yielding, long slender (LS) grained variety suitable for both transplanted and rainfed conditions, thus catering to diverse agro-ecological regions.

DRR Dhan 79 demonstrated superior performance across multiple environments. In AICRP trials during 2021-23, it ranked among the top entries in 28 trials, recording an overall mean

grain yield of 5708 kg/ha with 12.19, 11.5 and 6.56% yield advantage over the national (NC), zonal (ZC) and local (LC) checks respectively in the states of its release and notification, Odisha and Bihar in eastern, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra in central and Tamil Nadu and Karnataka in southern zones evaluated in 48 trials across three years (2021, 2022 and 2023). The superiority over checks validates its adaptability across various locations. Under optimum fertilizer management (100% NPK), yields ranged from 6.10 to 7.12 t/ha at major testing locations including Coimbatore, Nawagam, Puducherry, Maruteru, Titabar and Rajendranagar. In addition to yield and stress resilience, DRR Dhan 79 exhibits acceptable head rice recovery (55.4%), alkali spreading value (4.0%), amylose content (24.58%) and gel consistency (49.67mm) indicating good cooking and consumer quality typical of premium LS grain types preferred in domestic markets.

PPV&FRA Reg No. REG/2025/1252