Pusa Composite 701
An open-pollinated composite from ICAR-IARI — unlike a hybrid, saved seed can be resown next season without a sharp yield drop.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- 78–82 days
- Expected yield
- 20–23 q/ha
- Suitable soil
- Sandy / light soil
- Disease resistance
- Resistant to downy mildew and blast
- Release
- Bred by the Division of Genetics, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi; officially released in 2016 for India's A-zone dryland belt
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Pusa Composite 701 is an open-pollinated (composite) pearl millet variety bred by the Division of Genetics at ICAR-IARI, New Delhi, and officially released in 2016 for India's A-zone dryland belt, per two IARI pages (its own iari-varieties database and its ZTM-BPD technology-transfer listing). Both agree it is recommended for Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Delhi, reaches medium maturity in around 80 days, is highly resistant to downy mildew, and was specifically bred to perform under limited-irrigation, water-deficit growing conditions. The ZTM-BPD page additionally credits it as a dual-purpose variety valued for both grain and stover (fodder) yield, records an average grain yield of about 2.3 t/ha (23 q/ha) across trials, and states resistance extends to blast as well as downy mildew.
Should you pick this variety?
Pick Pusa Composite 701 if you want disease safety and your own seed in one variety. It is the only open-pollinated bajra here that is resistant to both downy mildew and blast, and its recommendation, the full seven-state A-zone dryland belt of Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Delhi, is the widest of the bajras here. Against Pusa Composite 383 it wins on disease cover, where 383 is only moderately tolerant. On yield the two are close: 20–23 q/ha against 383's 16–20 in farmers' fields, and IARI's own catalogue puts 383 at 22–24, so do not buy 701 for tonnage. The cost is time: at 78–82 days it is the longest crop of the group, so if the rains are short and the field must be cleared fast, HHB 67 Improved finishes in 65–70 days. If you are buying hybrid seed anyway, RHB 177 is rated 25–28 q/ha.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Highly resistant to downy mildew and separately reported resistant to blast too, two of pearl millet's most damaging diseases in dryland zones, per IARI's own variety pages
- As an open-pollinated composite rather than a hybrid, farmers can save and resow seed from their own harvest without the sharp yield collapse a hybrid would show — useful where buying fresh hybrid seed every season isn't affordable
- Bred specifically for limited-irrigation ("water-deficit") growing conditions and recommended across all seven A-zone states (Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi), giving it wide adaptability
- Dual-purpose: valued for stover (fodder) yield alongside grain, useful where a farmer also keeps livestock
Things to consider
- Duration, yield and states above follow IARI's own variety pages: about 80 days to medium maturity, about 2.3 t/ha (23 q/ha) average trial yield, and the full seven-state A-zone recommendation.
- No source found gives the specific parent lines that make up the composite, an exact seed rate, or a sowing-window/spacing recommendation particular to this variety, as distinct from generic pearl millet practice — left unstated rather than guessed.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Rajasthan
- Haryana
- Gujarat
- Madhya Pradesh
- Uttar Pradesh
- Punjab
- Delhi
A wet August: the field routine that keeps the crop
Downy mildew and blast both arrive with wet, humid weather, which in the A-zone dryland belt usually means a long August spell. Pusa Composite 701 is reported resistant to both, and that is the main reason to choose it over Pusa Composite 383, whose cover is only moderate tolerance. Resistance, though, is one layer of protection, not the whole roof.
Keep the ordinary routine going in a wet year. Sow clean, treated seed. Keep the field drained so water does not stand between rows. Walk the crop after a wet week and look at the earheads: a green, twisted, leafy head instead of a filled one is downy mildew showing itself, and the sooner you spot it, the sooner you can remove and destroy affected plants rather than let them stand. Do not take seed for next year from a stand that carried disease, even though the variety is open-pollinated and resowing is otherwise one of its advantages — a clean 20–23 q/ha field is where next year's seed should come from.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This is an open-pollinated variety, so seed from a healthy crop of your own can be sown again. Keep seed only from disease-free plants, dry it properly, store it cool and dry, and bring in fresh certified seed every three to four years so the variety does not drift.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Bajra (Pearl Millet) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HHB 67 Improved | The shortest rains — grain in under 70 days | 65–70 days | 20–25 q/ha | Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat |
| Pusa 1201 | Grain plus fodder, and a second summer crop | 75–78 days | 18–20 q/ha | Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan |
| Pusa Composite 383 | Keeping your own seed in the dry tracts | 70–75 days | 16–20 q/ha | Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh |
| Pusa Composite 701this page | Downy mildew and blast cover, with seed you can resow | 78–82 days | 20–23 q/ha | Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi |
| RHB 177 | The highest yield here, with bird-resistant earheads | 78–80 days | 25–28 q/ha | Rajasthan, Haryana |
| RHB 273 | The widest disease cover — once the seed reaches you | 78–80 days | ~22 q/ha average (2,230 kg/ha) in multi-location trials; up to ~28 q/ha implied by the reported 13–27% advantage over regional checks, though no trial explicitly reports that upper figure | Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana |
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 Bajra (Pearl Millet) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Bajra (Pearl Millet) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Germination CalculatorTest 100 seeds from the bag before sowing and see whether the lot is fit to sow.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Bajra (Pearl Millet) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Bajra (Pearl Millet) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Bajra (Pearl Millet) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Bajra (Pearl Millet) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Bajra (Pearl Millet) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Can I save seed from Pusa Composite 701 and resow it next year?
Yes — that's the point of an open-pollinated composite variety: unlike a hybrid, farm-saved seed doesn't drop sharply in yield the way hybrid seed does. IARI's own release material recommends it partly for this reason.
Which states is Pusa Composite 701 officially recommended for?
Per IARI's own variety pages, the full A-zone: Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Delhi — wider than the three states (Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat) sometimes quoted for it.
Is Pusa Composite 701 resistant to downy mildew?
Yes — IARI describes it as "highly resistant" to downy mildew, and separately notes resistance to blast as well, two of pearl millet's major disease pressures.
How long does Pusa Composite 701 take to mature?
IARI's own pages list it as "medium maturity," about 78–82 days.
Is Pusa Composite 701 suited to rainfed or low-irrigation farming?
Yes — IARI specifically developed and recommends it for limited-irrigation, water-deficit growing conditions, which is part of why it is grown across dry western and northern India.
Pusa Composite 701 or Pusa Composite 383?
701 is the stronger of the two on almost every count: resistant to downy mildew and blast against 383's moderate tolerance, 20–23 q/ha against 16–20 q/ha, and recommended for seven states against three. 383's one advantage is a few days: 70–75 days against 78–82. Both are open-pollinated, so you can keep seed from either.
Does blast resistance matter in bajra, or is downy mildew the only worry?
Downy mildew is the bigger and better-known problem, but blast is also among the damaging diseases of pearl millet in the dryland zones, and IARI reports this composite as resistant to both. In a wet spell that is two worries fewer. It does not replace clean seed, good drainage and crop rotation — it means a wet year is less likely to cost you the crop.
Pusa Composite 701 or a hybrid like RHB 177 — which pays more?
RHB 177 is rated higher, 25–28 q/ha against 20–23 q/ha, and it resists downy mildew. But it is a hybrid, so you buy seed every year. Pusa Composite 701 gives up some yield to give you resowable seed and resistance to blast as well. If seed cost worries you more than the last few quintals, take 701.
What seed rate and spacing should I use for Pusa Composite 701?
No source we found gives a seed rate, sowing window or spacing for Pusa Composite 701 specifically, so no figures are invented for it. Use your state's general pearl millet recommendation for rainfed or low-irrigation fields, and ask your KVK if it has a trial note for this composite.
Sourced from: IARI Varieties — Pearl Millet (Pusa Composite 701) — ICAR-IARI, Pearl Millet Varieties/Hybrids — ZTM-BPD Technology Transfer Unit, ICAR-IARI. editorial policy.