Closure will negatively impact North-South research linkages

Ooty: Scientific sources having good knowledge on the significance of potato research in the hills here opined that the  ongoing research in Central Potato Research Station (CPRS-Ooty) here in Ooty will play a major role as the technologies and varieties developed at this station may serve as source for the management of 'Potato Cyst Nematode(PCN)' in the recently quarantined states of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand. PCN, a microscopic parasite, is a serious pest of potatoes across the globe and is subject to stringent quarantine or otherwise regulatory procedures wherever it occurs.

The closing of CPRS-Ooty will negatively impact the research work and take back the country 10-12 years behind in the area of PCN resistance breeding, the sources said.

The closure will also reflect in the seed availability of resistant varieties to the Nilgiris farmers. Finally, it will lead to break of linkage of research in potato cultivation from North and

South Indian states of the country which is of major concern. The ultimate sufferers will be the farmers, government and researchers thus, the CPRS-Ooty needs to be strengthened, sources added.