Sree Hira
Released by CTCRI's Bhubaneswar Regional Station specifically for Odisha, tolerant to the leaf blight very prevalent in the state's traditional varieties, with very low acridity and good cooking quality.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Arbi (Taro)
- Type
- Corm / cormel (vegetative)
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- About 180 days (6 months)
- Seed rate
- Cormels, planted to give the standard 45–60 cm × 30–45 cm spacing
- Expected yield
- About 18 t/ha (leaflet); 18 to 20 t/ha (CTCRI bulletin)
- Suitable soil
- Rainfed upland to irrigated medium/low land
- Disease resistance
- Tolerant to leaf blight
- Release
- Released in 2022 by ICAR-CTCRI (Regional Centre, Bhubaneswar) for Odisha; described in an April 2023 technical leaflet by M. Nedunchezhiyan, Kalidas Pati, V.B.S. Chauhan, K. Laxminarayana and M.N. Sheela
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Sree Hira is a taro (Colocasia esculenta) variety that the Regional Centre of ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute (CTCRI), Bhubaneswar, released in 2022 for Odisha. An April 2023 technical leaflet describes it for rainfed upland and for irrigated medium and low land. Its main trait is tolerance to taro leaf blight, which the leaflet calls very common in Odisha's traditional varieties. The crop matures in about 180 days (6 months in the CTCRI bulletin), and each plant makes 12 to 16 cormels, 14 to 18 cm long. The leaflet gives about 18 t/ha and the bulletin gives 18 to 20 t/ha. Fresh cormels carry 17.4% starch and 1.2% sugar, with good taste and aroma and very low acridity (calcium oxalate 9.2 mg/100 g). It needs 700 to 1,000 mm of rainfall or its irrigated equivalent, tolerates drought and short submergence, and responds to 80:60:80 kg/ha N:P2O5:K2O with 10 t/ha FYM, at pH 5.5 to 7.0.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Sree Hira if you farm in Odisha, your taro gets leaf blight, and your land is rainfed upland or irrigated medium and low land. It is also the one to pick when buyers complain about itching: CTCRI lists it as low in acridity. Do not choose it for a summer crop. CTCRI's other 2022 release, Sree Telia, is the 4 month type for summer planting with protective irrigation (10 to 12 t/ha). Do not choose it for swampy land either. CTCRI points to Pani Saru and Bhu Kripa for waterlogged fields in coastal Odisha. We found no trial of Sree Hira outside Odisha.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeOdisha: rainfed June to July; irrigated February to March or October to November (CTCRI taro bulletin).
- Seed rateCormels, planted to give the standard 45–60 cm × 30–45 cm spacing
- SpacingRidges/rows 45–60 cm apart, cormels 30–45 cm apart in the row
- Fertilizer80:60:80 kg/ha N:P:K with 10 t/ha FYM, per the CTCRI Bhubaneswar technical leaflet
- HarvestingAbout 180 days (April 2023 leaflet) or 6 months (CTCRI bulletin). About 1 month before digging, wrap the suckers round the base, earth up and stop irrigation (CTCRI).
Soil & climate
Soil
- pH
- 5.5–7.0
Climate
- Rainfall
- 700–1,000 mm; drought and short-submergence tolerant
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Tolerant to taro leaf blight, described by CTCRI as "very prevalent in traditional varieties of Odisha" — a direct fix for the region's main taro disease
- Very low acridity (calcium oxalate ~9.2 mg/100 g) with good cooking quality, palatability and aroma
- Suited to both rainfed upland and irrigated medium/low land, and tolerant of both drought and short submergence
Things to consider
- Developed and documented specifically for Odisha conditions; performance elsewhere is not separately confirmed here
- Shorter duration (~180 days) than several other CTCRI releases trades off some of the higher yield potential seen in longer-duration varieties like Sree Kiran
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Odisha
Match Sree Hira to your field type and planting month
CTCRI recommends Sree Hira for rainfed upland and for irrigated medium and low land in Odisha. For rainfed taro the bulletin gives June to July. For irrigated taro it gives February to March and October to November. Hira takes about 6 months, so a June to July planting is dug around December to January.
A February to March planting puts the crop through the whole monsoon, which is exactly when leaf blight spreads. That is where Hira's tolerance is worth most, but keep mulching and removing infected leaves. An October to November planting needs irrigation through the dry months, so cost the water before you commit.
Not every plot suits Hira. If the field floods and stays wet, CTCRI points to Pani Saru and Bhu Kripa for waterlogged coastal land. If you want a quick summer crop, Sree Telia is the 4 month type, and it gives 10 to 12 t/ha. Hira is the one for the ordinary upland or medium-low field with a blight problem.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This crop is grown from tubers, so your own field can supply next season. Keep medium-sized, firm tubers from healthy plants, store them cool and dark, and throw out anything soft or rotting — the disease travels inside the tuber. Replace your stock with certified planting material every few seasons, because virus builds up quietly year after year.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Arbi (Taro) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panchamukhi | Farmers whose buyers pay for big mother corms rather than small cormels | Not published (taro in general: 5 to 8 months, CTCRI) | 20.00 t/ha corm yield in a 40-cultivar trial (mother corm, not cormel yield) | West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha |
| Punjab Arvi-1 | Punjab farmers who want an early taro and can buy heavy seed cormels | 176 days | About 225 q/ha (22.5 t/ha), PAU release figure | Punjab |
| Sree Hirathis page | Odisha farmers with leaf blight on rainfed upland or irrigated medium and low land | About 180 days (6 months) | About 18 t/ha (leaflet); 18 to 20 t/ha (CTCRI bulletin) | Odisha |
| Sree Kiran | Kerala farmers who cannot sell the whole crop in one week and want a taro that keeps | 190–210 days | 17.5 t/ha usual, 28.5 t/ha potential (CTCRI) | Kerala |
| Sree Pallavi | Kerala farmers with a leaf blight or mosaic history who sell small cormels | 7 months (about 210 days) | 16 t/ha usual, 18 t/ha potential (CTCRI) | Kerala |
| Sree Rashmi | Kerala smallholders who want a non-acrid taro that does not need heavy inputs | 210–240 days | 18 to 20 t/ha usual, 32 t/ha potential (CTCRI) | Kerala |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Arbi (Taro) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Arbi (Taro) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Arbi (Taro) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Arbi (Taro) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Arbi (Taro) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Arbi (Taro) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
How much fertiliser does Sree Hira need?
The CTCRI leaflet gives 80:60:80 kg/ha of N:P2O5:K2O with FYM. That is the same as the bulletin's blanket dose for Odisha, Bihar, Assam and Jharkhand. For the split, put all the phosphorus at planting, give 1/3 of the nitrogen and potash 2 weeks after sprouting and the rest in 2 equal doses a month apart. Do earthing up at the same time.
Sree Hira or Sree Telia: which should I plant?
Both were released by CTCRI in 2022 for Odisha. Sree Hira takes about 6 months, gives 18 to 20 t/ha and is tolerant to leaf blight. Sree Telia takes 4 months and gives 10 to 12 t/ha. CTCRI calls it susceptible to blight, but it escapes the disease by being harvested early. Pick Telia only when you want a summer crop with protective irrigation and a quick harvest.
Is Sree Hira really low in itch?
CTCRI's leaflet measured calcium oxalate at 9.2 mg/100 g of fresh cormel and calls the variety low in acridity. Do not compare that with the bulletin's 165 to 232.5 mg/100 g for acrid taro. The bulletin counts total oxalate, a different measure. Even so, cook it fully before you eat it or sell cooked.
How much will Sree Hira yield, and in how many days?
The April 2023 leaflet gives about 180 days and about 18 t/ha. The CTCRI bulletin lists 6 months and 18 to 20 t/ha. Plan on 18 t/ha. Each plant makes 12 to 16 cormels, 14 to 18 cm long. If you plant in June to July, as the bulletin advises for rainfed taro in Odisha, you dig around December to January.
Can I plant Sree Hira outside Odisha?
CTCRI developed it at its Bhubaneswar centre for Odisha, and the leaflet and bulletin recommend it only for Odisha. We found no trial in another state. The leaflet gives 700 to 1,000 mm of rainfall or its irrigated equivalent. Compare that with your own rainfall, and test a small plot first.
Sourced from: Taro — ICAR-CTCRI technical bulletin (2025): varieties, planting, nutrition, storage. editorial policy.