Ganga Safed 2
Bred and released in 1963 as a three-way, top-cross hybrid — (CM 400 × CM 300) × CM 600 — not a composite. Decades of farmers re-sowing their own harvest have made it behave, and be marketed, like an open-pollinated variety; see the FAQ below.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Maize
- Type
- Hybrid
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- 100–110 days
- Expected yield
- 40–50 q/ha
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Release
- Released 1963 from the Delhi maize breeding centre, pedigree (CM 400 × CM 300) × CM 600; notified for Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan
About this variety
Ganga Safed 2 (also written Ganga Safed-2) is one of India’s earliest publicly bred maize releases, from the Rockefeller Foundation-assisted Intensive Maize programme of the early 1960s. It was released in 1963 from the Delhi maize breeding centre with the pedigree (CM 400 × CM 300) × CM 600 — a three-way, top-cross hybrid combination of inbred lines, not a composite. Its white, semi-flint grain and its age as one of the oldest surviving public releases are why it is still sold today. Because it is decades-old, publicly bred hybrid germplasm that farmers have re-sown from their own harvests for generations, current agri-extension sources generally market and describe it as an open-pollinated, seed-saveable variety — that is a difference in how it is used and sold today, not in how it was bred; see the FAQ below.
Key characteristics
Yield & maturity
Maturity period
100–110 days
Expected yield
40–50 q/ha
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
Pest & disease considerations
Major diseases
- Moderate — leaf blight
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- One of the longest-surviving public maize releases in India, so seed remains cheap and widely available through state seed corporations
- White, semi-flint grain suited to regional food preferences in its recommended belt
Things to consider
- The Krishi Jagran source for this variety gives 100–110 days duration and a yield described as "40 to 50 quintals per acre" — treated here as a per-hectare figure, since a maize yield of that scale genuinely per acre would be implausibly high and no other source corroborates it; duration and yield above reflect this source
- A third-party research note additionally claimed an ICAR/CIMMYT-documented three-way hybrid pedigree (matching what this record already states), plus specific plant height, husk cover and downy-mildew/rust/borer resistance figures, sourced to a CIMMYT repository PDF, a JIRCAS archive PDF, a Bihar government notified-variety PDF, and a ResearchGate review. All four could not be independently confirmed here — the CIMMYT and Bihar-government PDFs and the ResearchGate page returned 403 Forbidden, and the JIRCAS PDF loaded but contained no matching text for this variety — so those additional plant/disease figures were not added
- The description/release text names Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan as the notified belt, but the states field below instead lists Madhya Pradesh in place of West Bengal — sources checked don’t resolve which is right, so it is flagged here rather than picking one arbitrarily
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Uttar Pradesh
- Bihar
- Madhya Pradesh
- Rajasthan
Frequently asked questions
Ganga Safed 2 is listed as a hybrid here — so why do farmers save and resow its seed like an open-pollinated variety?
Its 1963 breeding record shows it was released as a three-way, top-cross hybrid — (CM 400 × CM 300) × CM 600, a combination of inbred lines, not a true open-pollinated composite. That is its correct breeding classification, which is why the type field above says hybrid. But it is old, publicly bred germplasm, not a modern proprietary single-cross, so decades of farmers re-sowing their own harvested seed with acceptable results have made it behave, and be marketed, like an open-pollinated variety today. If you want maximum vigour, use certified fresh seed rather than farm-saved seed.
How does Ganga Safed 2 compare with a modern hybrid like DHM 117?
It sits at a much lower yield ceiling, but its seed is far cheaper and can be resown from a farmer’s own harvest with acceptable performance, unlike a modern single-cross hybrid, which needs fresh certified seed every season to hold its yield advantage.
Sourced from: Maize Profit Booster: Choose the Best High-Yield Varieties for Smart Farming — Krishi Jagran. editorial policy.