Ashok K Raina Phytotron Research Foundation, Bangalore – 560 064.
Yes – It continues to be the fascinating endure for me like few others, spending past, present and even future few years, just wondering which non-food oilseed, how and where to grow for more seeds per unit area and time to create a renewable energy substitute to black gold.
Jatropha easily passed as a surprisingly simply logical answer. It was easy to grow, multiply, and process for non-edible oilseeds. But but, but ---- and many more buts were soon to be discovered. I once convinced a friend of mine to bet few bucks with me on Jatropha. Upon my later very apologetically imploring, he did sermon me “--- it was nothing more than Akal Khateer Jamha”. Right he was, but did he succeed in stopping me – not even in my dreams.
Saddled on the Trojan horse, I once again braved thus looking for the treasure trove. How I could not ignore the Maharashtra and Andhra failed Jatropha ventures of ‘80s and ‘90s, and again all the while continued to reason and convince myself, and how I could not but ignore such hardbound planning commission drafts, and redrafts on Biofuel Policy from the past, present and surely future strategies of Nation building. Comedy of Error – You may dare say so?
Jatropha is high Yielding old seed crop only after Oil palm on planet Earth. But then i
Re: Eradication of Jatropha
by Ashok on Oct 31, 2010 08:12 PM
But then it is a wild bush, with very little genetic variability of the sorts that can be usefully utilized for obtaining high and more importantly stable yields.
Jatropha bears fruit for a very, very, -- God only knows how much, long, long time. But then needs pruning and tending, watering and fertigation, so was very wisely professed without knowing how, when and to what consequences.
Jatropha must be divine, to be free from disease and pest, but then pest and diseases are not. So Jatropha often is found severely infested with fungal, bacterial and viral diseases and damaged by major and minor pest attacks.
Jatropha is a fence plant and well know from its wild occurrences. But when grown and intercropped, innocent children could not be protected from food poisoning due to the consumption of few seeds.
The real Bad news is that commonly occurring Jatropha Mosaic Virus has a very wide host range and cross-infection between crop and non-crop species does occur and JMV spread can cause pandemic with serious implication, threatening several food, vegetable and fiber crops. Before it is too late, it is time to sound a National Alert on threat from Jatropha Viruses to crops and the indiscriminate and unplanned plantation must be removed. I shall be pained more than any one else to see Jatropha go from our neighborhood, but believe me it is only for the common good. So please do not hesitate. Jatropha eradication is necessary for food security and it is definitely not anti-so
Please use more scientific methods and stay on just a word and a negative perception can easily discourage the growers,all factors need to be considered like gestation period ,better seeds ,rainwater harvesting(as the article some moisture content is still needed). With patience,preserverance succuss will follow as studies indicate it did succeed in Brazil and parts of Africa. please monitor carefully and do not come to a conclusion at a very early stage. if needed rope in the united nations help as well.Agricutural research institute should play a active role with input to farmers and encoragement rama mohana rao anne sydney australia
