Kranti
A little-documented open-pollinated castor variety, also called PCS-4, grouped with rainfed varieties such as 48-1 (Jwala) and Jyoti (DCS-9). No breeding station, parentage, release year or yield trial for it could be found. Its seed can be saved and resown, with care, because castor cross-pollinates by up to 50%.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Castor
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- Not published for Kranti. Castor in general needs 5 to 10 months for a paying seed yield (ICAR-IIOR).
- Expected yield
- No published figure for Kranti. ICAR-IIOR gives 1,100 kg a hectare rainfed for the comparable open-pollinated variety 48-1 (Jwala).
- Suitable soil
- Sandy / light soil
- Disease resistance
- No published resistance data for Kranti. 48-1 (Jwala) is listed as resistant to Fusarium wilt.
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Kranti is an open-pollinated castor variety, also registered as PCS-4. It is grouped with other open-pollinated rainfed varieties such as 48-1 (Jwala) and Jyoti (DCS-9). We could not find its breeding station, parentage, release year or an official yield, and the ICAR-IIOR table of important castor varieties (48-1, DCS-107, GC-3, Pragathi, YTP-1, GAC-11) does not include it. Because it is open-pollinated, a farmer can save and resow its seed. Castor cross-pollinates by up to 50%, so saved seed stays true only if the seed plot is kept apart from other castor. If you want an open-pollinated castor with a published record, 48-1 (Jwala) is the documented choice.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Kranti only if you can see its seed lot papers. Nothing official is published about its parentage, release year or yield. For an open-pollinated castor with a record, choose 48-1 (Jwala). The ICAR-IIOR table lists it at 1,100 kg a hectare rainfed and 2,000 kg irrigated, for all castor-growing regions, resistant to Fusarium wilt and tolerant of Botrytis, salinity and drought. In the AICRP trials 48-1 had 0.0% wilt irrigated and 1.27% rainfed. If you want more yield and can pay for seed every year, choose a hybrid such as DCH-519 or GCH 8.
Sowing & cultivation
- FertilizerVariety (not hybrid) doses per ha: 45:15:15 kg NPK on rainfed land and 60:30:30 under irrigation, which is lower than the hybrid doses. These are TNAU's blanket doses, so use your soil test where you have one. Put all the phosphorus and half the nitrogen and potash in at sowing. Under irrigation, give the rest of the nitrogen and potash in two equal splits at 30 and 60 days after sowing
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Open-pollinated, so seed can be saved and resown and no hybrid seed is bought each year.
- Grouped with the rainfed castor varieties, which suits low-input land and intercropping.
Things to consider
- No published breeding station, parentage, release year or official yield for Kranti.
- Not listed in the ICAR-IIOR table of important castor varieties.
- Saved seed loses purity if castor in nearby fields cross-pollinates it, which can happen up to 50%.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Rajasthan
- Gujarat
Kranti or 48-1 (Jwala): choosing an open-pollinated castor with a paper trail
Open-pollinated castor appeals for one reason: you can save the seed. That cuts the yearly seed bill, which matters on rainfed land where a bad season can wipe out the crop. The catch is that you need to know what you are growing.
Kranti, also called PCS-4, has no published breeder, parentage, release year or yield on the sources we could reach. The ICAR-IIOR table of important castor varieties does not list it. So, as a buyer, you cannot check what the seed should look like or yield.
48-1 (Jwala) has all of that. ICAR-IIOR lists it for every castor-growing region of India, at 1,100 kg a hectare rainfed and 2,000 kg irrigated, resistant to Fusarium wilt and tolerant of Botrytis, salinity and drought, with a stated cross (High Oil Mutant x Mauthner's Dwarf) and a named seed source. In AICRP trials it served as the resistant check, with 0.0% wilt irrigated and 1.27% rainfed. That is why we suggest it first for a farmer who wants a seed-saving castor. Keep Kranti for the case where a trusted local source gives you its papers.
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 Castor variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DCH-519 | Rainfed or irrigated fields where a proven, wilt-resistant hybrid with easy seed supply is wanted | 200–230 days (staggered picking) | 1,740 kg a hectare rainfed and 2,130 kg irrigated (ICAR-IIOR); 3,874 kg in Rajasthan farmer-field demonstrations | Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan, Gujarat |
| GAUCH 1 | Farmers who already grow GAUCH 1 and have land with no wilt history | 150–180 days | About 1,520 kg a hectare irrigated (ICAR-IIOR); no rainfed figure published | Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu |
| GCH 8 | Farmers who can irrigate and want the highest-yielding, wilt-resistant castor hybrid | About 7 months with four pickings (sown in mid-August, last picking in the last week of March at Sardarkrushinagar) | 19 q/ha rainfed; 36 q/ha irrigated | Gujarat |
| GCH-4 | Farmers who already grow GCH-4 and can get its seed, on land with little wilt | 200–220 days (staggered picking) | 1,200 kg a hectare rainfed and 2,200 kg irrigated (ICAR-IIOR table) | Gujarat |
| GCH-7 | Irrigated Gujarat fields with a wilt problem, where the farmer already knows this hybrid and its seed | 200–220 days (staggered picking) | About 3,000 kg a hectare irrigated (ICAR-IIOR); 4,324 kg in a 2016-17 trial at Sardarkrushinagar | Gujarat |
| GNCH-1 | Irrigated Gujarat fields, including late-kharif, rabi and after-paddy sowings, where wilt and leafhopper are the main risks | 200–220 days (staggered picking) | Around 2,545 kg/ha in trials, roughly 14% higher than GCH-7; 20–25 q/ha under good irrigated management | Gujarat |
| Krantithis page | Rainfed farmers who want seed they can save, and who accept a lower yield than a hybrid | Not published for Kranti. Castor in general needs 5 to 10 months for a paying seed yield (ICAR-IIOR). | No published figure for Kranti. ICAR-IIOR gives 1,100 kg a hectare rainfed for the comparable open-pollinated variety 48-1 (Jwala). | Rajasthan, Gujarat |
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 Castor is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Castor 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 Castor variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Castor into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Castor in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Castor rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Castor seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Kranti castor a hybrid or open-pollinated variety?
Open-pollinated. Unlike the GCH, GNCH and DCH hybrids, its seed can be saved and resown by the farmer.
What is Kranti castor also known as?
It is also registered under the designation PCS-4.
Which castor varieties is Kranti grouped with?
It is grouped with other open-pollinated rainfed varieties such as 48-1 (Jwala) and Jyoti (DCS-9).
What is Kranti castor's parentage and release year?
We could not find them in any official source. Ask the seed supplier for the breeder, the release year and the seed-lot certificate before you buy.
Why choose Kranti over a hybrid castor variety?
Because you can save and resow its seed, so you do not buy seed every season, while hybrid seed is a cost every year. The price is a lower yield. For comparison, the ICAR-IIOR table gives 1,100 kg a hectare rainfed for the open-pollinated 48-1 (Jwala), against 1,740 kg for DCH-519 and 1,895 kg for GCH 8.
Can I save Kranti seed and sow it next year?
Yes, because it is open-pollinated. But castor carries male and female flowers on the same plant and cross-pollinates by up to 50% (Movaliya et al., 2018). Pollen from other castor in nearby fields can mix your seed. Keep a seed plot apart from other castor, pick seed from healthy plants of the true type, and renew your seed from a trusted source every few years. We found no published isolation distance for castor.
How does Kranti compare with 48-1 (Jwala)?
48-1 is the documented open-pollinated castor. ICAR-IIOR lists it for all castor-growing regions of India at 1,100 kg a hectare rainfed and 2,000 kg irrigated, resistant to Fusarium wilt and tolerant of Botrytis, salinity and drought, with seed from ICAR-IIOR, Hyderabad. For Kranti none of this is published. As a resistant check in AICRP trials, 48-1 had 0.0% wilt irrigated and 1.27% rainfed.
Is Kranti in the official list of important castor varieties?
Not in the ICAR-IIOR list we read. Its table of important varieties names 48-1, DCS-107, GC-3, Pragathi, YTP-1 and GAC-11. Kranti, also written PCS-4, is not among them. That does not prove it is not a real variety, but it does mean there is no official record to check.
How do I check that the seed sold to me as Kranti is real?
Ask for the tag and label on a sealed packet with the variety name, the lot number and the seller's details, and keep the bill. Ask which institute or seed company bred the seed and in what year it was released, since no official source here gives these. If the seller cannot answer, buy 48-1 (Jwala) from ICAR-IIOR or an authorised dealer instead, because its record is public.
Sourced from: ICAR-IIOR hybrids and varieties table, Vikaspedia (high yielding hybrids and varieties of castor), Movaliya et al., Study of variability and correlation for seed yield in castor, Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry 7(2), 2018, Patel et al., A high yielding and wilt resistant castor hybrid for India (GCH 8), Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 90(5), 2020, Nutrient management: castor — TNAU Agritech Portal (blanket NPK doses for varieties and hybrids, rainfed and irrigated). editorial policy.