Erratic rainfall patterns and increasing temperatures have induced climate-driven water scarcity, that adversely affects agricultural productivity worldwide. Optimizing drip irrigation in conjunction with mulching has become an effective framework to optimize the water use efficiency (WUE) and improve overall crop performance. The study evaluated different levels of drip irrigation based on crop-evapotranspiration (ETc) along with inorganic and organic mulches and their impact on crop growth, yield, soil macronutrients, nutrient uptake, WUE and economic returns of pea. Field experiments were conducted in Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India during 2022–2023 and 2023–2024. Treatments included drip irrigation at 100

In the mountainous regions, where irrigation water is scarce and temperatures are less than ideal, we aimed to explore the combined effects of mulching and organic manure on organic carbon fluctuations, microbial populations and enzymatic activities in soil under ginger. A two-year field study (2021 and 2022) was conducted at Dr. YS Parmar University, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, using a split plot design. Main plot treatments included grass (straw) mulch, black plastic mulch (25 and 100 µ thickness). Sub plot treatments consisted of farmyard manure (FYM), vermicompost (VC) and sheep-goat manure (SGM), alone or in combination. Grass mulch showed the highest soil organic carbon content (19.02 g kg− 1), viable bacteria (132.65 × 106 ± 1.66 cfu g− 1 soil), fungi (35.73 × 103 ± 1.86 cfu g− 1 soil), actinomycetes count (45.50 × 103 ± 0.78 cfu g− 1 soil) and enzymatic activities (646.17 ± 8.77 µg of p-NPP g− 1 soil hr− 1 acid phosphatase, 6.16 ± 0.15 mg TPF g− 1 soil per 24 h dehydrogenase and 17.84 ± 0.20 mg NH3-N g− 1 soil per hr urease) among mulches. Among the sub plot treatments, FYM combined with 50% RDF (recommended dose of fertilizers) through FYM and SGM generated the best results in terms of soil organic carbon (17.63 g kg− 1) microbial counts (135.40 × 106 ± 2.58 cfu g− 1 soil viable bacteria, 39.93 × 103 ± 1.92 cfu g− 1 soil viable fungi and 44.48 × 103 ± 0.99 cfu g− 1 soil) and enzymatic activities (524.06 ± 11.33 µg of p-NPP g− 1 soil hr− 1 acid phosphatase, 6.55 ± 0.10 mg TPF g− 1 soil per 24 h dehydrogenase and 18.04 ± 0.17 mg NH3-N g− 1 soil per hr urease). Positive correlations were observed between soil organic carbon, microbial biomass carbon, microbial populations and enzymatic activities. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed two key components explaining 94.5% of the total variance in soil health parameters under mulching and manuring, with PC1 (79.4%) dominated by organic carbon, microbial counts and enzymatic activities and PC2 (15.1%) mainly associated with enzymatic functions. The synergistic effects of grass mulch and FYM with SGM provide a blueprint for resilient soil ecosystems.

Persimmon production globally is significantly affected by fruit abscission, caused by two distinguishable waves of fruit drop, leading to a reduction in production. To mitigate this issue, plant bio-regulators and biostimulants may play a vital role. In this study, the application of plant bio-regulators and a bio-stimulant was orchestrated at precise time intervals: 6 wk before full bloom, 1 week before full bloom, and 30 days subsequent to full bloom. The experimental design employed in this investigation adhered to a randomized block design framework, wherein thirteen distinct treatments were meticulously replicated thrice to ensure statistical robustness. These treatments encompassed an array of concentrations and types of bio-regulators and bio-stimulants, denoted as follows: T1: Gibberellic acid (GA3) 20 ppm, T2: GA3 40 ppm, T3: GA3 60 ppm, T4: Benzyladenine (BA) 20 ppm, T5: Benzyladenine 40 ppm, T6: Benzyladenine 60 ppm, T7: Brassinosteroid 0.1 ppm, T8: Brassinosteroid 0.01 ppm, T9: Brassinosteroid 0.001 ppm, T10: Bio-stimulant 1 mL/L; T11: Bio-stimulant 2 mL/L; T12: Bio-stimulant 3 mL/L; and T13: Control (water spray). Among the various treatments administered, an apparent enhancement in various fruit quality parameters was observed, including fruit weight, yield, ascorbic acid content, total soluble solids (TSS), total sugars, and non-reducing sugars. These improvements were particularly pronounced following the foliar application of 40 ppm GA3. Additionally, the application of 60 ppm BA exhibited a noteworthy influence on fruit size and volume, underscoring its significance in augmenting these specific morphometric characteristics.

Water scarcity poses a significant constraint to agricultural productivity worldwide, affecting crop growth, yield, and quality across various regions. In water-scarce environments, the combined application of drip irrigation and mulching has become a common practice for optimizing water use. This study aimed to assess the influence of different irrigation levels, based on crop-evapotranspiration (ETc) and organic mulches on the growth, yield, soil properties, and economic returns of French bean in mid-hill region of Himachal Pradesh, India. The experiment was conducted using various combinations of drip irrigation levels (100

Biochar (BCH), often dubbed “Black Gold,” has evolved as a cutting-edge technique for soil amendment with significant potential advantages. Despite the assortment of methodologies utilized for its fabrication, a rigorous and detailed classification framework is currently lacking in the scientific literature. BCH is produced through the process of thermochemical conversion of biomass in an environment characterized by limited oxygen supply. Although a plethora of literature has focused on the ecological and agricultural advantages of using BCH, scant attention has been given to its potential adverse impacts on the ecosystem. Soil-borne pathogens are known to significantly impair crop productivity and soil fertility by impeding nutrient release. As a management strategy, BCH has been proposed as a potential approach to mitigate the negative impact of soil-borne diseases and reduce yield losses. This review presents a comprehensive analysis of the different facets of BCH, including its potential positive and negative impacts on soil fertility, biology, and pathology. The incorporation of BCH in soil has been shown to boost plant growth, promote bacterial activity, and increase invertebrate populations. The specific type of BCH utilized, including the feedstock (FS) and pyrolysis temperature, in conjunction with pollutant concentrations, play a crucial role in determining the ultimate impact of this material on soil. Adverse effects of BCH on soil can manifest due to multiple factors, underscoring the need for meticulous and appropriate measures prior to its use in agriculture.

French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important crop for green and dry beans while tender pods as vegetable. An experiment was conducted during March–June 2021 at the research farm of Dr Y S Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh to assess the effect of different irrigation levels and organic mulches on soil properties, growth and productivity of French bean. Experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design with 3 replications comprising of 7 treatments. The study resulted, that plant height, no. of pods per plant, days to first harvest and yield of French bean were significantly affected by different irrigation levels and organic mulches. The maximum yield, water use efficiency, B:C ratio were observed under treatment I1M2 (80% ETc + Grass mulch). Therefore, adopting drip irrigation with mulching can contribute to increasing irrigated area and enhancing yield potential of French bean in the mid hill zone of Himachal Pradesh.

The present study was carried out at the experimental farm of the Department of Floriculture and Landscape Architecture of Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan under naturally ventilated polyhouse conditions during 2014-16. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design having 10 treatments of drip irrigation levels replicated thrice. The observations on various physico-chemical properties of growing medium were recorded. The results revealed that treatment T10 was found successful in ensuring higher availability of NPK content. The said treatment recorded maximum values for available nitrogen (398.97 Kg ha-1), available phosphorus (61.14 Kg ha-1) and available potassium (253.23 Kg ha-1).

Commiphora wightii (Arnott) is an important medicinal plant, belongs to Burseraceae family. This plant is considered as an endangered plant in India and listed as “Data Deficient” in the IUCN Red Data List because of excessive exploitation for taping of gum causes mortality of plants, lack of knowledge for its conservation, poor germination capacity of seed, lack of proper vegetative propagation method and unscientific cultivation. Therefore, there is an urgent need to conserve this species ex situ through in vitro methods. However, under in vitro medium browning is a major problem in Commiphora wightii due to the exudation of high amount of phenols, especially in mature explants (nodal segment and shoot apex). In present study an attempt has been made to demonstrate the effect of antioxidants on in vitro degree of browning and culture establishment of guggul. Different antioxidants viz; activated charcoal, PVP, ascorbic acid and citric acid have been tried to eliminate medium browning problem through incorporation on the responsive culture medium for shoot proliferation (nodal segment, 1.5 mg/l BAP and shoot apex, 2.0 mg/l Kn) and callus induction (leaf explants, 2.0 mg/l 2,4-D). Among the different antioxidants, activated charcoal (150-200 mg/l) was found better in reducing browning of medium, establishment of culture and promoted shoot proliferation and callus differentiation because it controls the accumulation of inhibitory substances and it immediately absorbs plant growth regulators and vitamins from the medium and gradually releases them again in the medium. Maximum callus differentiation in leaf explants was observed at 250 mg/l activated charcoal followed by 200 mg/l. Among all the antioxidants polyvinyl pyrroli done was least effective to proliferate shoot bud and callus induction.

Haphazard and inappropriate plant spacing and poor soil fertility management practices are among the major factors constraining onion production. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted in Lovely Professional University from November 2017 to April 2018 to assess the influence of spacing (15×10cnm, 15×10cm and 10×10cm) and different nitrogenous fertilizers (Urea, Calcium nitrate and N:P:K mixture) on growth, yield, and quality of onion. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) of with three replications. Significant difference was observed among all the treatments. The tallest plants (63.67cm) were obtained from the treatment with N: P: K applications well as those spaced at 10 cm intra and inter row spacing. Nitrogen fertilizers and spacing interacted significantly to influence all parameters. Thus, nitrogen fertilizer across the increasing spacing significantly increased number of leaves (30 DAT) fresh bulb weight and bulb diameter. The highest value of plant height (30, 60, and 90 DAT) and number of leaves (60, 90 and 120 DAT) were observed from the application of calcium nitrate and plant spacing of 15×10 cm. whereas total bulb yield was highest in T1S2 (18.53T ha-1). It can be concluded that the highest benefit with low cost of production was obtained in response to the application of nitrogen fertilizers (urea & calcium nitrate) and spacing (15x10cm & 10x10cm) was optimum for producing the crop in the limited area.

The eighteenth century , a century which constitutes the core of the era of decline of Mughals , has provoked in recent decades a quality and volume of research that has come to establish it as a sub-specialization in the field of Indian History. Actually, the condition of women in any society is a major yardstick of its social values and social structure. Women often are at the receiving end of any social and political order. A society expresses its gender relation in many ways, one of them being crime against women . The type of crime, its frequency, pattern, attitude of state and society toward it, punishment and tolerance towards the culprit, and more importantly the victim, would help us situate women in the context of time and society . This eventually would have to be seen in the larger perspective of the society in general. A society manufactures a set of constructs-mental, social, cultural, ritual, legal – to control women and their sexuality. The entire discussion on women and crimes perpetrated against them and the liberal social and state attitude is crucial to the understanding of the social milieu prevalent during the medieval and early modern period in India. This writing shows that throughout history women suffered from some kind of patriarchal limitations and taboos .

Growing population demands for more and more land as well as other resources to fulfil their basic needs and daily requirements. As the population grows the consumption of resources increases that leads to generation of more waste materials. This waste can be solid or liquid that need proper disposal or it can lead to hazardous condition in a region. Municipalities around the world use either burning of the waste material or they put the waste into landfills (also known as dumping grounds). Landfill is most popular method of solid waste disposal in the developing countries like India. But due to lack of technology and proper funding these landfills are the source of pollution to soil and water. Toxic materials coming in contact with the surface and subsurface soil as well as the water resources lead to degradation of these valuable resources. In the light of above discussion the present study intends to examine the quality of soil and water resources in and around the dumping location of SahibzadaAjit Singh Nagar. The study will analyse the chemical, physical and biological characteristics of the soils and ground water sources within the landfill location and at the specific distance. Study is based on the primary data collected from the field and analysed in the national level testing laboratories. Results obtained are then compared with the world health organisation and Indian Standards of Drinking Water Quality.

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is mainly grown in rainfed area and terminal drought stress is one of the major constrain to chickpea production in India. The present study was undertaken to identify the traits of significance that contribute towards terminal drought tolerance in chickpea. The two chickpea genotypes HC-1 (drought sensitive) and RSG 931 (drought tolerant) and F3 progeny lines of cross HC-1 × RSG 931 were grown in drought microplots and data was recorded for root and physiological traits under terminal drought stress. The results showed wide variation for root and physiological traits in HC-1, RSG 931 and F3 progeny lines of chickpea. Significant positive correlation was recorded between seed yield and water potential; seed yield and RWC; seed yield and quantum yield of photosystem II,,whereas root traits were not positively correlated with seed yield. The results of present study showed that physiological parameters could be reliable tools for screening of terminal drought tolerance in chickpea.

Drought stress is one of the major constraints that greatly limit the productivity of wheat worldwide. Deciphering the molecular basis of drought tolerance can help in combating drought stress. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to determine genetic diversity among six drought tolerant and six drought sensitive varieties of wheat. Out of 15 ISSR primers used, 14 primers gave reproducible banding pattern. These 14 primers generated 191 amplified products out of which 93 were polymorphic. Overall size of PCR amplified products ranged between 400 bp and 4000 bp. Based on similarity matrix data, the value of similarity coefficient ranged from 0.70 to 0.94. Cluster analysis discriminated the wheat varieties into two major clusters, one consisted of drought tolerant varieties and the other had all drought sensitive varieties. The present study showed that ISSR markers provide a valuable tool to study genetic variability in wheat varieties.

Nine isolates of Turnip mosaic potyvirus (TuMV)-infecting radish collected from different regions of Northern India were characterized. All isolates except for New Delhi and Rajasthan isolates resulted positive for TuMV in double antibody sandwich-enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA). RNA was isolated from leaves of infected plants and used in reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) with TuMV coat protein (CP) gene-specific primers. Viral amplicons of expected 1000 bp size were obtained, which were further subjected to cloning and sequencing. CP gene of all the seven isolates was 867 bp long, encoding 288 amino acid residues. Percent homology of CP gene of all the Indian isolates among themselves and with other TuMV isolates retrieved from NCBI was in the range of 87-99 and 92-100% at nucleotide and amino acid levels, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis based upon CP gene nucleotide and amino acid sequences with other TuMV isolates reported from across the globe using unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) inferred classification of test isolates into basal-BR group due to their occurrence nearest to the TuMV isolates belonging to the basal-BR group. Information generated about the characteristic features of TuMV and geographical distribution of particular virus genotype-infecting radish crop will provide a platform for formulating disease resistance strategies.

20Oct 2017 ESTIMATION OF EXTRACELLULAR LIGNINOLYTIC ENZYMES FROM WILD AURICULERIA POLYTRICHA, HELVELLA SP. AND MORCHELLA SP. Neha Thakur , Astha Tripathi , Sukrit Sagar , Pardeep Kumar , Nagina Devi , Shaveta , Isha Sharma , Monika and Jyoti Sharma. Applied Sciences and Biotechnology, Shoolini University.