Four newly developed moth bean varieties — CAZRI Moth-4, 5, 6 and 7 — by ICAR-Central Arid Zone Research Institute (CAZRI) demonstrated remarkable field resilience during an El Niño year in Kharif 2026, surviving a 35-day dry spell.
Context
What Moth Bean Is
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- Vigna aconitifolia — also called mat bean, Turkish gram or dew bean
- An extremely drought-hardy, herbaceous, short-day annual legume of the family Fabaceae
- Among the most resilient pulse crops of hot arid and semi-arid zones of South Asia
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Habitat and Growing Conditions
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- Native to South Asia; grown in hot, rainfed, marginal desert tracts
- Most extensively in the Thar Desert region of western Rajasthan, and parts of Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab
- Thrives in low and erratic rainfall, poor sandy soils with low organic carbon and fertility, and temperatures exceeding 40°C
Important Facts for Examsmost asked
- Vigna aconitifolia — moth bean, mat bean, Turkish gram, dew bean; family Fabaceae
- A short-day annual legume; among the most drought-tolerant pulses
- Grown mainly in the Thar Desert, western Rajasthan; also Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab
- Cultivated on nearly 10 lakh hectares; yield about 350 kg per hectare
- Regional rainfall 150–250 mm; normal dry spells of 20–30 days
- Varieties: CAZRI Moth-4, 5, 6 and 7, developed by ICAR-CAZRI, Jodhpur
- Survived a 35-day dry spell (3 August – 7 September 2026) in Kharif 2026
- Developmental plasticity — flowering at about 30 days; adjusts maturity to moisture
- “Pala” — the dry fodder from moth bean, valued for desert livestock
- Rhizobium symbiosis fixes atmospheric nitrogen in root nodules
- Other Vigna pulses: moong (Vigna radiata), urad (Vigna mungo), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata)
- ICAR-CAZRI, Jodhpur — the nodal institute for arid zone research
- India is the world’s largest producer and consumer of pulses, and also the largest importer
