Impact of Microbial Products on the Biometric Parameters and Productivity of Rice in Madhya Pradesh, India

Despite the increase in chemical and technological inputs, rice production in India has stagnated due to excessive use of chemical inputs and overexploitation of land. This has given rise to the need for adopting sustainable agricultural inputs and practices. This study explores the effect of two organic microbial consortium based products, Magicgro DripSOL and Magicgro Super when used in combination for improving the productivity of commercially grown varieties of Basmati; PB1 and PS4 as well as local scented variety MTU-1010. The trials were conducted on commercial plots spanning across Mandala and Kotma regions of Madhya Pradesh, which were cultivated organically with no external irrigation. The impact of microbial intervention was assessed through biometric and quantitative yield analysis and the data was compared by unpaired T test analysis. In case of PB1, PS4 and MTU 1010, the mean yield increased by 72, 55 and 36%, respectively as compared to the untreated plots. The results signify that a single point intervention using microbial products is capable of bringing about significant improvement in yield. In addition to this, the microbial product application helped in imparting protection against abiotic stress. Therefore, the usage of such products could be considered as part of the solution towards achieving the Nation's mission of promoting sustainable agriculture.