Seed Science and Technology Programme

Post-Graduate Programme on Seed Science & Technology

Rationale for a Seed Science and Technology Department

Improved seed is the most vital input in agriculture. Good quality seeds of improved varieties and hybrids have been playing crucial role in boosting agricultural production, and in fact it is the most important factor for vertical growth in crop productivity. It is said that good seed does not cost, it only pays. Quality seeds remain to impact agricultural productivity in a sustainable way. New and improved varieties of seeds are new technology for agricultural production. Improved seeds also carry new technology from laboratory to the farmers’ fields, as it is the medium through which plant breeding and biotechnological innovations are transferred to farmers. Even response to other technologies like irrigation, fertilizers, planting methods etc are, to a large extent, influenced by improved seeds. Quality seeds are important for agricultural production in all environments, more particularly in unfavourable rainfed and stress environments.

Seed sector has grown into an industry with lot of employment potential. Technically qualified persons with managerial skills are required to man the seed industry. In addition to the public sector corporations, the private seed companies are coming up in a big way. At the same time research on various aspects of seeds is also important to generate new information on seed production, processing, storage, seed pathology and entomology and marketing of seeds. For all these sectors technically qualified people in seed science and technology are required. To develop technically qualified human resource for the seed sector in Assam and North East India, need for a post-graduate programme in Seed Science and Technology has been felt for a long time. Such programmes at masters and Ph. D. level have been running in many state agricultural universities and at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute.

At Assam Agricultural University, seed technology is taught at under-graduate level, presently with a 2+1 credit hours course. At post-graduate level, there was an optional 2+1 credit hours course on Seed Technology in the old syllabus in the discipline of Plant Breeding & Genetics. This course has now been dispensed with in the new ICAR post-graduate course syllabi. On the contrary the ICAR course curriculum provides full-fledged course syllabi for M. Sc. (Agri) and Ph. D. programs as a separate discipline. However, in the new syllabi, an optional course on Seed Physiology at Ph.D. level and a course on Seed Health Technology at M. Sc. Level have been incorporated in the Departments of Crop Physiology and Plant Pathology, respectively. In this situation a student willing to specialize in Seed Technology, does not get an opportunity to do M. Sc. in Seed Science & Technology at AAU. Thus, a post-graduate programme offering for M. Sc. (Agri) in Seed Science & Technology is urgent need for training human resource for the seed sector.

Therefore, a post-graduate programme for M. Sc. (Agri) in Seed Science & Technology, having maximum intake capacity of 10 students, is proposed initially under the Department of Plant Breeding & Genetics as the nodal Department. The programme will be subsequently developed into a Department of Seed Science & Technology having course programme up to Ph. D. level.

Objectives of Seed Science & Technology Programme

· To offer the courses in Seed Science and Technology for under-graduate, masters and Ph.D. (subsequently) degree programmes in Seed Science and Technology in the Faculty of Agriculture, Assam Agricultural University.

· To impart training to seed certification officers, seed testing officers, seed producers and seed dealers.

· To carry out basic and applied research in various aspects of Seed Science and Technology.

· To standardize seed production technologies for different crops of Assam.

Facilities available

The existing laboratory, field and office facilities of the Department of Plant Breeding & Genetics including National Seed Project (Crops) Unit are utilized for running the SST programme. The Department has qualified faculty, supporting lab, field and office staff. The Department, particularly the NSP (Crops) Unit, has facilities for laboratory and field works for seed production, seed testing including use of molecular markers, seed pathology, seed entomology, and seed physiology works. Collaboration is sought from the Departments of Crop Physiology, Plant Pathology, Entomology, Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Biotechnology and Agricultural Engineering.