IISR Pragati
A 2017 IISR germplasm selection that matures in 180 days, with 38 t/ha fresh, orange rhizomes, 5.02% curcumin, 15.29% oleoresin and moderate resistance to root-knot nematode. Dry recovery is low, 15.95%.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Turmeric
- Type
- Planting material
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- 180 days (IISR)
- Seed rate
- TNAU gives 2,000 kg of finger rhizome a hectare, in pieces of 25 to 30 g dibbled 4 cm deep. IISR gives no separate seed rate for this variety.
- Expected yield
- 38 t/ha fresh rhizome (IISR variety page and Indian Horticulture 2025); 52 t/ha potential
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Release
- Released 2017 (IISR variety and landmark pages; IISR's table says 2016) · ICAR-IISR, Kozhikode, Kerala
About this variety
IISR Pragati is a turmeric variety released in 2017 by ICAR-IISR, Kozhikode, selected from germplasm. IISR's table gives 2016 as the year. It is a short-duration turmeric of 180 days, with a fresh yield of 38 t/ha and a potential of 52, and orange rhizomes. The plant is 104 cm tall with 9.4 tillers a clump and 577.93 g of rhizome from a clump. Curcumin is 5.02%, oleoresin 15.29%, fibre 3.29 to 4.5% and dry recovery 15.95%. IISR rates it moderately resistant to root-knot nematode. The table recommends Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana, and lists 14 licences issued.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose IISR Pragati if you want the shortest crop with a high fresh yield, or if root-knot nematode is in your soil. IISR gives it 38 t/ha fresh in 180 days, with orange rhizomes, 5.02% curcumin and 15.29% oleoresin, and rates it moderately resistant to root-knot nematode. The catch is dry weight. IISR gives dry recovery of only 15.95%, the lowest of its turmeric releases. By our arithmetic, 38 t at 15.95% is about 6.1 t of dry rhizome, behind Prathibha at about 7.2 t from 39.12 t at 18.5%. If you sell cured turmeric or powder, count the dry crop. If you sell fresh rhizome, Pragati's 180 days is its strong point.
Key characteristics
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeMay to June (TNAU)
- Seed rateTNAU gives 2,000 kg of finger rhizome a hectare, in pieces of 25 to 30 g dibbled 4 cm deep. IISR gives no separate seed rate for this variety.
- SpacingTNAU: 45 x 15 cm, on ridges 45 cm apart or on raised beds 120 cm wide.
- FertilizerTNAU basal dose: 25 t farmyard manure and 200 kg neem or groundnut cake a hectare, with 25 kg N, 60 kg P and 108 kg K, plus 30 kg ferrous sulphate and 15 kg zinc sulphate. Top dress 25 kg N and 108 kg K at 30, 60, 90, 120 and 150 days after planting. IISR gives no separate dose for this variety.
- HarvestingTNAU: the plants lodge, yellow and dry when the crop is mature. Dig the rhizomes with a spade or fork. TNAU gives 25 to 30 t/ha fresh and 5 to 6 t/ha cured as the general yield.
Soil & climate
Soil
- Suitable soil
- Friable, well-drained red loam in wet or garden land under tropical conditions (TNAU)
Yield & maturity
Maturity period
180 days (IISR)
Expected yield
38 t/ha fresh rhizome (IISR variety page and Indian Horticulture 2025); 52 t/ha potential
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
Pest & disease considerations
Major diseases
- Root-knot nematode (moderately resistant, IISR)
- Rhizome rot (Pythium): use clean seed from a healthy plot, plant on well-drained ground, and treat seed rhizomes as TNAU says, with phosalone 2 ml a litre and 0.3% copper oxychloride for 30 minutes, or Pseudomonas fluorescens 10 g and Trichoderma viride 4 g a kg.
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- A 180-day crop, among the shortest of IISR's turmeric releases, with 38 t/ha fresh.
- Moderately resistant to root-knot nematode.
- 5.02% curcumin and 15.29% oleoresin, with orange rhizomes.
Things to consider
- Dry recovery of only 15.95%, the lowest of IISR's turmeric releases, so about 6.1 t/ha dry by our arithmetic.
- IISR's pages disagree on the yield (38 or 33.19 t/ha) and the release year (2017 or 2016).
- Only moderate nematode resistance, and no named rhizome rot rating.
Suitable regions
IISR's variety table recommends Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana.
- Kerala
- Karnataka
- Andhra Pradesh
- Chhattisgarh
- Telangana
Fresh tonnes are not dry tonnes: Pragati against Prathibha and Suguna
Turmeric is mostly sold after it is boiled and dried, so what matters is the dry weight, not the fresh weight. Dry recovery tells you how much dry rhizome you get from each tonne dug. IISR gives Pragati 15.95%, Prathibha 18.5% and Suguna 20.4%.
Multiply fresh yield by dry recovery, and the picture changes. By our arithmetic from IISR's figures, Pragati's 38 t/ha comes to about 6.1 t of dry rhizome, Prathibha's 39.12 t/ha to about 7.2 t, and Suguna's 29.3 t/ha to about 6.0 t. Pragati lands level with Suguna on dry weight and below Prathibha, even though its fresh yield is much higher than Suguna's. TNAU's general figure of 5 to 6 t/ha cured sits at the lower end.
Pragati's real edge is time and nematode cover: 180 days against 225 for Prathibha, and moderate resistance to root-knot nematode. Choose it for those, not for the dry crop.
Can you save seed from this crop?
Turmeric is grown from rhizomes, not seed. Keep seed rhizomes from a clean plot, store them in sand under partial shade as TNAU advises, and do not use rhizomes from plants that showed rot.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Turmeric variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Starts bearing | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IISR Alleppey Supreme | Deep colour and high curcumin (5.5%) for buyers who pay for colour, rainfed in Kerala or irrigated elsewhere | About 210 days | About 200 q/ha (fresh, IISR) | Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal |
| IISR Kedaram | Steady curcumin and leaf-blotch cover, rain-fed Kerala or irrigated Maharashtra | 180 days (IISR variety page); 210 days (IISR table) | 29 t/ha fresh on average (IISR variety page) or 34.5 (IISR table); 5.28 t/ha dry | Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal |
| IISR Prabha | Curcumin-led sales; a 205-day high yielder | 205 days (IISR) | 37 t/ha fresh rhizome (IISR variety page); 37.5 in the 2025 Indian Horticulture appraisal | Kerala, Tamil Nadu |
| IISR Pragatithis page | A short 180-day crop with a high fresh yield; nematode soils | 180 days (IISR) | 38 t/ha fresh rhizome (IISR variety page and Indian Horticulture 2025); 52 t/ha potential | Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana |
| IISR Prathibha | The highest fresh yield of IISR's turmeric releases, with high curcumin and nematode resistance | 225 days (IISR); 210 to 240 days in the Indian Horticulture 2025 appraisal | 39.12 t/ha fresh rhizome on average (IISR), about 391 q/ha | Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana |
| IISR Surya | The powdering industry; light-coloured, aromatic turmeric | 220 to 240 days (IISR) | 29 t/ha fresh rhizome on average; 41 t/ha potential; 5.8 t/ha dry (IISR variety page) | Kerala, Telangana, Odisha, Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh |
| Rajapuri | Thick, fleshy rhizomes sold through the Sangli market, for Maharashtra farmers who sell by size | 240–270 days | 200–250 q/ha (fresh rhizome) | Maharashtra |
| Roma | Odisha turmeric with 5.0% curcumin and good tolerance to leaf and rhizome disease, selected at a high-altitude station | 200–255 days | 200–250 q/ha (fresh) | Odisha |
| Salem (Tamil Nadu local) | A big-rhizome Tamil Nadu farmer type with 4.75% curcumin and about 300–320 q/ha fresh | 250–270 days | 250–300 q/ha (fresh) | Tamil Nadu |
| Sudharsana | A short 190-day crop with plump orange rhizomes | 190 days (IISR) | 28.8 t/ha fresh rhizome on average; 54.9 t/ha potential (IISR) | Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh |
| Suguna | Highest curcumin of the IISR releases here (4.9%) in a short 190-day crop, for Kerala and Andhra Pradesh | 190 days | 280–320 q/ha (fresh rhizome) | Kerala, Andhra Pradesh |
| Suroma | The same Odisha line as Roma with slightly higher curcumin (5.1%) and oleoresin (14.7%) | 200–255 days | 200–250 q/ha (fresh) | Odisha |
| Suvarna | Deep orange rhizomes and the widest field-tolerance list (rhizome rot, leaf blotch, leaf spot, scale, shoot borer), in about 200 days | About 200 days | 250–300 q/ha (fresh rhizome) | Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana |
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 Turmeric is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Turmeric plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Turmeric variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Turmeric 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 Turmeric rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Turmeric seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Which yield is right for Pragati, 38 or 33.19 t/ha?
IISR's variety page and the 2025 Indian Horticulture appraisal give 38 t/ha, and IISR's variety table gives 33.19. We show 38 because two sources agree, and note the other. Either is a trial figure. TNAU gives 25 to 30 t/ha fresh as the usual farm yield for turmeric.
Why is Pragati's dry recovery so low?
IISR gives 15.95% and gives no reason. It means each tonne of fresh rhizome dries down to less than for Suguna (20.4%) or Prathibha (18.5%). It is a trade-off for a short, high-yielding crop, but IISR does not say so. Weigh your own cured crop from a small plot before you plant widely.
Does Pragati resist rhizome rot?
IISR gives no named rhizome rot rating. Its one disease note is moderate resistance to root-knot nematode. Use clean seed, good drainage and the TNAU seed treatment.
Is Pragati a 2016 or a 2017 release?
IISR's variety page and landmark page say 2017, and its variety table says 2016. We show 2017 and note the other. The Kozhikode institute can say which is the notification year.
Sourced from: IISR-Pragati (Turmeric) — ICAR-Indian Institute of Spices Research, Landmark Technologies — ICAR-IISR, Spice varieties: significant characteristics of turmeric varieties — ICAR-IISR (ITM-ABI), An appraisal of ICAR-IISR released varieties in spices — Indian Horticulture, July-August 2025 (Shivakumar and others), Turmeric — TNAU Agritech Portal (season, seed rate, spacing, manuring, seed treatment, yield). editorial policy.