Arakta
Phule Arakta, released by MPKV Rahuri in 2003. Raised from cuttings. An earlier-ripening sibling of Bhagwa with somewhat less bacterial blight.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Pomegranate
- Type
- Planting material
- Season
- All seasons
- Starts bearing
- Bearing from year 2–3 (cutting-raised plant)
- Expected yield
- 130–160 q/ha at full bearing
- Suitable soil
- Sandy / light soil
- Disease resistance
- Comparatively better bacterial blight tolerance than Bhagwa
- Release
- Pre-released in 1989 and formally released as Phule Arakta by MPKV Rahuri in 2003, alongside Bhagwa. It is a selection from the same Ganesh × Gul-e-Shah Red F2 population at the Horticultural Research Station, Rahuri. It was not released by ICAR-NRCP Solapur, which was set up only in 2005.
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Arakta and Bhagwa come from the same Ganesh × Gul-e-Shah Red (a Russian cultivar) F2 breeding population at MPKV Rahuri's Horticultural Research Station. It was pre-released in 1989 and formally released as Phule Arakta by MPKV Rahuri in 2003, alongside Bhagwa. The two dates are the same selection at two stages. The fruit is round, smooth and glossy with a dark brick-red rind and sweet, dark-red, soft-seeded arils. It ripens earlier than Bhagwa, at 130–140 days from fruit to harvest against 180–190, and it is described as a heavy yielder and quite drought tolerant. In a bacterial blight screening of 149 accessions, Arakta showed 44.49% disease severity and Bhagwa 58.11%. The same study found no accession, Arakta included, actually resistant or tolerant.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Arakta if you want a heavy-yielding pomegranate that is ready sooner than Bhagwa (130–140 days against 180–190 from fruit to harvest) and that is reported to stand dry spells well. In one screening of 149 accessions it showed 44.49% bacterial blight severity against Bhagwa's 58.11%. That is less bad, not safe, because no accession in that study was resistant. Choose Bhagwa instead if your buyer pays the export premium for its saffron rind and dark-crimson arils. Choose Ganesh only if your local market wants soft pinkish arils.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Less bacterial blight than Bhagwa in a head-to-head screening: 44.49% against 58.11% disease severity across 149 accessions. This helps most in a wet, humid year.
- Ripens earlier than Bhagwa, at 130–140 days against 180–190, and is reported as a heavy yielder and drought tolerant.
Things to consider
- At 44.49% disease severity, Arakta was still not classed as resistant or tolerant in that trial. Read "less blight than Bhagwa" as "somewhat less bad", not "blight-safe". Keep a spray and orchard-cleaning routine.
- 1989 and 2003 are not rival release years. 1989 was the pre-release, and 2003 was the formal release as Phule Arakta by MPKV Rahuri.
- If a buyer asks who released it, the answer is MPKV Rahuri, a state agricultural university. ICAR-NRCP Solapur did not release it. That centre was set up only in 2005, and its own varieties are newer hybrids such as Solapur Lal.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Maharashtra
- Karnataka
Count from fruit set: 130–140 days, not 130–140 from planting
Arakta's 130–140 days and Bhagwa's 180–190 days are both counted from fruit to harvest. A plant still needs 2–3 years after planting before it bears.
Write down the date each tree sets fruit. Add 130 days and 140 days to get your picking window. For Bhagwa on the next row, add 180 and 190.
The gap is 40 to 60 days. That gap can let you sell before the main rush, or finish harvest before the wet weather. It only pays if your buyer takes Arakta fruit.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This crop is raised from cuttings, not from seed, so you can take your own planting material. Take cuttings only from healthy, well-grown plants that are true to the variety, and never from one that showed disease — a cutting carries its mother plant with it. Where a nursery or a government farm sells clean planting material, that is the safer start.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Pomegranate variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Starts bearing | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Araktathis page | An earlier-ripening, drought-tolerant pomegranate with somewhat less bacterial blight than Bhagwa, for sandy soils in Maharashtra and Karnataka | Bearing from year 2–3 (cutting-raised plant) | 130–160 q/ha at full bearing | Maharashtra, Karnataka |
| Bhagwa | A saffron-rind, dark-crimson, soft-seeded pomegranate for export and premium buyers, for farmers ready to run a blight spray programme | Bearing from year 2–3 (grafted/cutting-raised plant) | 150–200 q/ha at full bearing | Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat |
| Ganesh | A soft-seeded, pinkish-aril pomegranate for Maharashtra markets that still pay for softness over rind colour | Bearing from year 2–3 (cutting-raised plant) | 120–150 q/ha at full bearing | Maharashtra |
| Mridula | A soft-seeded, dark-red-aril pomegranate valued for eating quality, for Maharashtra farmers who sell as table fruit | ~180 days | High | Maharashtra, Karnataka |
| Ruby | A multiple-cross IIHR pomegranate bred for aril colour and mellow seeds, for Karnataka and Maharashtra | ~180 days | High | Maharashtra, Karnataka |
| Solapur Lal | A 2022 ICAR-NRCP biofortified hybrid for Maharashtra, for table and processing use, ripening 15–20 days before Bhagwa | 160–165 days | High | Maharashtra |
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 Pomegranate is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Pomegranate plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Pomegranate variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Pomegranate 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 Pomegranate rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Pomegranate seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Which institute actually released Arakta?
Not ICAR-NRCP Solapur. Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth (MPKV), Rahuri released Arakta as Phule Arakta in 2003, after a pre-release in 1989. It came from the same Horticultural Research Station programme and the same Ganesh × Gul-e-Shah Red cross that produced Bhagwa. NRCP Solapur was set up only in 2005, and its own varieties are newer hybrids: Solapur Lal, Solapur Anardana, NRCP H-4 and NRCP H-14.
Is Arakta really more bacterial-blight tolerant than Bhagwa?
In one 149-accession ICAR screening study measuring both, yes — Arakta scored 44.49% disease severity against Bhagwa's 58.11%, a real, meaningful gap. But the same study found no accession tested, Arakta included, actually resistant to the disease — it's a lower-risk choice, not a blight-proof one.
Arakta or Bhagwa: which should I plant?
Arakta ripens earlier (130–140 days against 180–190 from fruit to harvest) and showed less blight (44.49% against 58.11%). Bhagwa has the saffron rind and dark-crimson arils that bring a 2–3 times price over Ganesh and strong export demand. No price premium is published for Arakta over Bhagwa. If you sell to exporters, check what they accept before you plant Arakta.
When is Arakta ready to pick?
The figure given is 130–140 days from fruit to harvest, against 180–190 days for Bhagwa. That is a count from the fruit stage, not from planting. A cutting-raised plant begins bearing in year 2–3. Mark the date each tree sets fruit and count forward from it.
Does Arakta still need a blight spray programme?
Yes. In the 149-accession study no variety was resistant, and Arakta still had 44.49% disease severity. Follow your state horticulture department's spray schedule, remove infected fruit and leaves, and be most careful in a wet, humid year.
Is Arakta a good choice for dry, sandy land?
It is described as notably drought tolerant and a heavy yielder, and it is recommended for sandy soil in Maharashtra and Karnataka. That makes it a sensible one to try in a low-rainfall block. No irrigation schedule is published, so ask your local horticulture office for one.
Can I grow Arakta from seed?
Not if you want the same fruit. It is raised from cuttings, which is why it appears as planting material. Buy rooted cuttings from a nursery that gives you a bill naming Arakta, and ask which mother block they came from.
Sourced from: Differential gene responses in different varieties of pomegranate during the pathogenesis of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. punicae — PMC, Pomegranate variety Solapur Lal — Global Agriculture, AboutNRCP — ICAR-National Research Centre on Pomegranate, Landmark Varieties — ICAR-National Research Centre on Pomegranate. editorial policy.