Pusa 372
A bold-seeded desi type that earns a better market price per quintal than the average local chana.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Gram (Chana)
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Rabi
- Maturity period
- 130–140 days
- Seed rate
- 15–18 kg per acre as a desi variety; 27 kg/acre for second-fortnight November sowing
- Expected yield
- 20–22 q/ha
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- Moderate wilt tolerance
- Release
- Released 1993 by ICAR-IARI; recommended for the Central Zone, North-East Plains Zone and North-West Plains Zone; long used as the national check variety for late-sown trials
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Pusa 372 is a widely adapted desi chickpea released in 1993 by ICAR-IARI, recommended across the Central Zone, North-East Plains Zone and North-West Plains Zone and long used as a national check variety in late-sown trials — a sign of how well-established it became. It was originally valued for its drought tolerance. An academic review of chickpea molecular breeding notes that its drought performance has declined in recent years under field conditions. That is why ICAR later used marker-assisted backcrossing to move the ‘QTL-hotspot’ drought-tolerance region from the landrace ICC 4958 into Pusa 372’s own background, producing the improved variety Pusa 10216.
Should you pick this variety?
Pick Pusa 372 if you want a chana with a long, well-known record on your kind of land. It is recommended across three zones at once — Central, North-East Plains and North-West Plains — and it is still the national check variety for late-sown trials, which is the strongest thing that can be said for a variety's steadiness: every new late-sown line is measured against it. What you are not buying is top yield. Its 20–22 q/ha sits below GNG-1958's 26.8 in the north-west belt, and two cautions are honest ones: its original drought tolerance has weakened over the decades, and a multi-race study found it susceptible to some wilt races. If drought is your main risk, ask your KVK for the improved successor Pusa 10216; if wilt is, choose JAKI-9218.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing time25 October to 10 November (PAU)
- Seed rate15–18 kg per acre as a desi variety; 27 kg/acre for second-fortnight November sowing
- Spacing30 cm between rows, seed 10–12.5 cm deep
- Sowing methodInoculate the seed with Mesorhizobium and Rhizobacterium and sow within an hour, by pora or a broad-fluted drill
- IrrigationA heavy pre-sowing irrigation and at most one later one, between mid-December and end-January. Excess irrigation costs grain (PAU)
- Fertilizer6 kg N and 8 kg P2O5 per acre drilled at sowing (PAU)
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Wide zonal adaptability — one of the few desi varieties recommended across three separate agro-climatic zones at once
- Suitable for late-sown conditions, giving some flexibility when the main sowing window is missed
Things to consider
- A multi-race Fusarium wilt screening study found Pusa 372 "susceptible" to some of the races tested. Read this alongside its "moderate wilt tolerance" rating: moderate tolerance overall can go together with susceptibility to specific newer races.
- Its original drought tolerance has reportedly weakened over decades of field exposure, which is why the MABC-improved Pusa 10216 line now exists as its successor for drought-prone tracts
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Uttar Pradesh
- Madhya Pradesh
- Rajasthan
Grading and selling bold desi grain
Pusa 372 earns a better price per quintal than average local chana because of grain size, not because of the name on the bag. That means the money is made in the last step: how clean and how uniform the lot is when the trader takes a handful out of it.
Harvest when the pods are dry but before they shatter, thresh at the right moisture so grain does not split, and dry the lot properly before bagging. Then sieve and grade: keep bold grain in one lot, and put small, split, stained and immature grain in a second one for home use or a lower rate. Mixing the two is the commonest way of losing a premium you have already grown. Since this variety also handles a late sowing, keep an eye on pod-fill moisture, which is what decides grain size in the first place.
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 Gram (Chana) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GNG-1581 (desi) | Light north-west soils where wilt and blight both show up | About 151 days | High | Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir |
| GNG-1958 (desi) | Normal-sown irrigated chana across the North Western Plain Zone | 135–145 days | 26.8 q/ha | Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh |
| JAKI-9218 (desi) | Central-plateau chana on land with a wilt and root-rot history | About 120 days | High | Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh |
| JG 11 | Early bold-seeded chana for the southern zone and tight rabi windows | 95–100 days | 18–20 q/ha | Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra |
| JG-14 (desi) | Early desi chana for double-cropping and escaping late-season heat | 100–105 days | High | Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat |
| JGK-1 (kabuli) | Central-zone kabuli chana on good soil with careful management | 105–120 days | Medium–High | Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh |
| Kak-2 (kabuli) | Extra-large kabuli grain for the premium and export market | 90–100 days | Medium–High | Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat |
| Pusa 256 | Bold brown desi grain, with room for a late sowing | 110–115 days | 18–20 q/ha | Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh |
| Pusa 372this page | Wide-area desi chana that also works for a late sowing | 130–140 days | 20–22 q/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan |
| Vijay (desi) | Rainfed chana on the plateau, where moisture runs out at pod-fill | 105–110 days | 20–25 q/ha | Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, 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 Gram (Chana) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Gram (Chana) 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 Gram (Chana) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Gram (Chana) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Gram (Chana) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Gram (Chana) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Gram (Chana) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Pusa 372 still a good choice for drought-prone land?
It still performs reasonably, but its drought tolerance has weakened somewhat over decades of field use. ICAR-IARI has since bred an improved successor, Pusa 10216, by introgressing a stronger drought-tolerance region into Pusa 372’s own background — worth asking your local KVK whether that newer line is available where you farm.
Why is Pusa 372 used as a ‘check’ variety in trials?
Because it has been grown across three agro-climatic zones for three decades with well-documented, stable performance, national trials use it as the known baseline against which newer late-sown chickpea lines are compared.
Is Pusa 372 still the right chana for dry land?
It still does reasonably, but its drought tolerance has weakened over decades of field use. That is why ICAR-IARI bred Pusa 10216 by adding a stronger drought-tolerance region into Pusa 372's own background. Ask your KVK whether that newer line is available near you before you order seed.
Pusa 372 or JG-14 if my sowing is late?
Pusa 372 is the variety national trials use as the late-sown check, so it handles a late start, but it needs 130–140 days. JG-14 finishes in about 100–105 days, which matters if the field must be clear for the next crop or if heat arrives early where you farm. Match the choice to how much season you actually have left.
Does Pusa 372's moderate wilt tolerance protect me?
Partly. A multi-race screening study found it susceptible to some of the races tested, so moderate overall tolerance can still break down against the particular race in your soil. Treat the seed, rotate with a non-host crop, and on a field with a heavy wilt history choose a resistant variety.
What fertiliser does Pusa 372 need?
6 kg N and 8 kg P2O5 per acre, drilled at sowing (PAU). On dry land the phosphorus matters more than the nitrogen, because it builds the root system that will have to find moisture at pod-fill.
When should I sow Pusa 372?
25 October to 10 November. At 130–140 days it is one of the longer chanas here, so a late sowing pushes pod-fill into the heat. If your field will only be free in December, Pusa 256 at 110–115 days is the safer choice.
Sourced from: Molecular Breeding and Drought Tolerance in Chickpea — PMC, Identification of multi-race Fusarium wilt resistance in chickpea using rapid hydroponic phenotyping — Phytopathologia Mediterranea, Package of Practices for Rabi Crops, Punjab Agricultural University: gram sowing window, desi seed rate, spacing, seed inoculation, fertiliser and irrigation. editorial policy.