Malian delegation gleans about PAU’s Wheat Research

Ludhiana, June 19, 2023: In a bid to discuss potential areas of collaboration and mutual cooperation in wheat cultivation, a five-member delegation led by Mamadou Lamine Haidar, the Vice President of CNPM (the National Council of Employers of Mali), met Dr. Satbir Singh Gosal, Vice-Chancellor of Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, at the campus.

Haidara was accompanied by Mohamed Alassane Kanoute and Maccaloo (an Investment Banker), Kabirou Kolo, Mamadou Coulibaly and Indian counterparts, Rajesh Aggarwal, Chairman of TRB Exports, Divyash Aggarwal and Harpreet Sandhu. Dr Ajmer SIngh Dhatt, PAU’s Director Research, Dr Makhan Singh Bhullar, Head, Department of Agronomy and Dr. Virinder Singh Sohu, Head, Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, and senior scientists were also present during the interaction.

Highlighting the institution's trailblazing contributions to agriculture, Dr S.S. Gosal informed that PAU has been the driving force behind Green Revolution in the country and it is currently at the forefront of conservation agriculture, apiculture, and farm mechanization. With a focus on developing climate-resilient, environmentally hazard-free and highly productive technologies, PAU is also testing the waters in the arena of genome editing, biosensors, Artificial Intelligence, and precision agriculture, he revealed. Outlining potential areas for cooperation, the Vice-Chancellor underscored the importance of forging strong research links between India and Mali.

Aiming to bolster the relationship between the two nations, Mr. Haidara expressed his desire to collaborate and tap into the expertise of PAU. Giving specifics of his country, he revealed that Mali is a landlocked nation in West Africa, with a significant portion covered by desert or semi-desert. Agriculture contributes 33% to the GDP and employs 80% of the population, offering untapped potential in the southern and central regions. The Niger and Sénégal rivers are key areas of activity, while the Sahara dominates the north.

Emphasizing the importance of cash crops like cotton in Mali's agricultural sector, Maccaloo acknowledged the vulnerability to unpredictable rainfall and fluctuating prices. Alongside dominant crops like rice, corn, millet, sorghum, and wheat, he drew attention to unexplored opportunities in shea butter, mangoes, peanuts, cashews, and biofuels. Mr. Haidara also mentioned prospects for modernizing poultry, livestock, agricultural machinery, fertilizers, agribusiness, farming, irrigation tools, and animal feed.

Dr A.S. Dhatt shared that Punjab has approximately 99% irrigated area out of which 71% is covered by tubewells. The wheat production rose from 1.7 million tonne in 1960-61 to 16.8 million tonne in 2022-23 in the state. Stating the basic features of Punjab agriculture, Dr Dhatt disclosed that the state has a rice-wheat-dominated cropping system with a very high cropping intensity (>200%). He cited rust-resistant wheat varieties developed by PAU as well as the newly released heat-tolerant early-maturing variety PBW 826 suitable for other states too. Besides, he also listed specialty varieties like PAU RS-1 which is a resistant starch variety, PBW1 Chapati - a premium chapati variety and PBW1 Zn - a high zinc wheat variety. Similarly, he apprised the envoy about varieties of rice, cotton, maize, sugarcane, oilseeds, pulses, forages, vegetables, fruits, flowers and agro-forestry as well as use of advanced technologies.

Harpreet Sandhu proposed the vote of thanks and viewed the Malian delegation’s visit as a step holding great promise for the future collaborations. Later, the delegates visited the Museum of Social History and Rural Life of Punjab situated at PAU.