Identification of Newer Stable Genetic Sources for High Grain Number per Panicle and Understanding the Gene Action for Important Panicle Traits in Rice.

Rice is an important food crop extensively cultivated worldwide, and rice's grain yield should be improved to meet future food demand. Grain number per panicle is the main trait that determines the grain yield in rice, and other panicle-related traits influence the grain number. To study the genetic diversity, 50 diverse Indian-origin germplasm were evaluated for grain number per panicle and other panicle traits for two consecutive seasons ( 2019 and 2020).

Exploring the Nutritional Potential of Wild Grass Fodder for Mega Herbivore () in the Foothills of Western Ghats.

An elephant, being a mega herbivore, consumes large amounts of food. Due to the lack of availability of fodder inside the forest, the elephants move out of their habitat areas and also find agricultural crops attractive, which further results in man-animal conflict. To improve the elephant habitat area, the current study was conducted to assess the availability of native fodder grasses inside the Coimbatore Elephant Reserve, Western Ghats, from April 2021-April 2022.