A farmer scientist has developed a Madhuban gajar which is a biofortified carrot variety with high Beta-Carotene & iron. Shri Vallabhbhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya is a farmer scientist who is from the Junagarh district of Gujarat.
This carrot variety has been planted in an area of more than 200 hectares in Junagarh and is benefitting over 150 local farmers in the area by becoming a main source of income.
It has been cultivated in over 1000 hectares of land in Gujarat along with other states such as West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh & Rajasthan in the last 3 years.
Significance:
Madhuban Gajar is a biofortified carrot variety that is highly nutritious and has been developed through the selection method with iron content (276.7 mg/kg) and higher Beta-Carotene content (277.75 mg/kg).
Key Highlights:
• This variety of carrot has been used for several value-added products like pickles, juices and carrot chips.
• Validation trials have been conducted on this variety of carrot by the National Innovation Foundation (NIF), India, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science & Technology, between 2016-2017. The trials were conducted at the Rajasthan Agricultural Research Institute.
• A significantly higher root yield (74.2 t/ha) was found in Madhuban Gajar carrot variety in those trials.
How the carrot variety was developed?
Shri Vallabhbhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya, in 1943 identified that a variety of a local carrot has been used for fodder in order to improve the quality of the milk. He selectively started cultivating the same variety and started selling this carrot in the market at a good price.
From that time, he and his family have been working on the development & conservation of the high yield variety of carrot.
Awards to Shri Vallabhbhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya:
He was conferred with Padma Shri in 2019 for his extraordinary contribution to the field of carrot.
In 2017, Shri Vallabhhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya has also been awarded a National Award by the President of India at Rashtrapati Bhavan.