Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute

About: Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute is a facility organization based out in New Delhi, India. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Small area estimation. The organization has 454 authors who have published 870 publications receiving 7987 citations.

Development of a GIS Interface for Estimation of Runoff from Watersheds

Abstract: Development of accurate surface runoff estimation techniques from ungauged watersheds is relevant in Indian condition due to the non-availability of hydrologic gauging stations in majority of watersheds. Besides this, the high budgetary requirements for installation of gauging stations are another limiting factor in India, which leads to the use of surface runoff estimation techniques for ungauged watersheds. Natural Resources Conservation Services Curve Number (NRCS-CN) method is one of the most widely used methods for quick and accurate estimation of surface runoff from ungauged watershed. Also, the coupling of NRCS-CN techniques with the advanced Geographic Information System (GIS) capabilities automates the process of runoff prediction in timely and efficient manner. Keeping view of this, a GIS interface was developed using the in-built macro programming language, Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) of ArcGIS® tool to estimate the surface runoff by adopting NRCS-CN technique and its three modifications. The developed interface named as Interface for Surface Runoff Estimation using Curve Number techniques (ISRE-CN), was validated using the recorded data for the periods from 1993 to 2001 of a gauged watershed, Banha in the Upper Damodar Valley in Jharkhand, India. The observed runoff depths for different rainfall events in this study watershed was compared with the predicted values of NRCS-CN methods and its three modifications using statistical significance tests. It was revealed that using all the rainfall data for different AMC conditions, the modified CN I performed the best [R2 (coefficient of determination) = 0.92; E (model efficiency) = 0.89) followed by modified CN III method (R2 = 0.88; E = 0.87), while the modified CN II (R2 = 0.42; E = 0.36) failed to predict accurately the surface runoff from Banha watershed. Moreover, under AMC based estimations, the modified CN I method also performed best (R2 = 0.95; E = 0.95) for AMC II condition, while the modified CN II performed the worst in all the AMC conditions. However, the developed Interface in ArcGIS® needs to be tested in other watershed systems for wider applicability of the modified CN methods.

A simple spectrophotometric method for estimating total glucosinolates in mustard de-oiled cake

Abstract: Glucosinolates are anti-nutritional factors present abundantly in the seed meal fraction of oilseed Brassica species. They are found in varying levels among different genotypes. Those genotypes containing less than 30 µmol/g are considered low/zero glucosinolate type and are preferred for edible purposes due to low pungency. Twenty two different genotypes were taken for the analysis of glucosinolates by spectrophotometry. A regression model was obtained using Ordinary Least Square technique which predicted a formula. Total glucosinolates (µmol/g) = 1.40 + 118.86 × A425, where A425 is the absorbance at 425 nm. The total glucosinolate content obtained by the prediction formula when compared with HPLC data showed a correlation coefficient of 0.942. This high correlation between the two data sets validated the developed methodology. This method also simplifies the estimation of total glucosinolates by excluding the use of HPLC or other sophisticated instruments.

Studies on novel nanosuperabsorbent composites: Swelling behavior in different environments and effect on water absorption and retention properties of sandy loam soil and soil-less medium

Abstract: A novel nanosuperabsorbent composite (NSAPC) was prepared by in situ grafting polymerization and cross-linking on to a novel biopolymer of plant origin (complex heteropolysaccharide in nature) in the presence of a clay mineral using a green chemistry technique. The opti- mization studies of various synthesis parameters, namely, type of clay, backbone/clay ratio, monomer concentration, cross-linker concentration, initiator concentration, quantity of water per unit reaction mass, particle size of backbone, etc., were done. The NSAPC was characterized by X-ray dif- fraction and scanning electron microscopy. Swelling behav- ior of NSAPC in response to external stimuli namely salt solutions, fertilizer solutions, temperature, and pH was stud- ied and compared with the performance of P-gel, a commer- cial superabsorbent material developed earlier in our laboratory. The NSAPC exhibited significant swelling in var- ious environments. Effect of NSAPC on water absorption and retention characteristics of sandy loam soil and soil-less medium was also studied as a function of temperature and tensions. Addition of NSAPC significantly improved the moisture characteristics of plant growth media (both soil and soil-less), showing that it has tremendous potential for diverse applications in moisture stress agriculture. V C 2010

RNAseq revealed the important gene pathways controlling adaptive mechanisms under waterlogged stress in maize.

Abstract: Waterlogging causes yield penalty in maize-growing countries of subtropical regions. Transcriptome analysis of the roots of a tolerant inbred HKI1105 using RNA sequencing revealed 21,364 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) under waterlogged stress condition. These 21,364 DEGs are known to regulate important pathways including energy-production, programmed cell death (PCD), aerenchyma formation, and ethylene responsiveness. High up-regulation of invertase (49-fold) and hexokinase (36-fold) in roots explained the ATP requirement in waterlogging condition. Also, high up-regulation of expansins (42-fold), plant aspartic protease A3 (19-fold), polygalacturonases (16-fold), respiratory burst oxidase homolog (12-fold), and hydrolases (11-fold) explained the PCD of root cortical cells followed by the formation of aerenchyma tissue during waterlogging stress. We hypothesized that the oxygen transfer in waterlogged roots is promoted by a cross-talk of fermentative, metabolic, and glycolytic pathways that generate ATPs for PCD and aerenchyma formation in root cortical cells. SNPs were mapped to the DEGs regulating aerenchyma formation (12), ethylene-responsive factors (11), and glycolysis (4) under stress. RNAseq derived SNPs can be used in selection approaches to breed tolerant hybrids. Overall, this investigation provided significant evidence of genes operating in the adaptive traits such as ethylene production and aerenchyma formation to cope-up the waterlogging stress.