Diversity assessment of rice varieties in Khairahani Municipality, Chitwan District, Nepal
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26832/24566632.2025.1002019Keywords:
Diversity index, Landraces, Hybrid variety, Improved variety, Rice varietal diversityAbstract
The study aims to assess varietal diversity in the Khairahani municipality of Chitwan district of Nepal. A cross-sectional survey and stratified random sampling were employed, surveying 100 households across all 13 wards. The survey focused on examining the effectiveness of varieties cultivated by farmers. Rice, the main staple crop in the Chitwan district, was found to consist of 19.20% of hybrid seeds, 9.74% of local seeds, and 71.06% of improved seeds. All hybrid seeds surveyed were registered, with 77.42% improved seeds and 20.59% of local seeds. Additionally, Chaite-5 was the most prevalent variety, followed by Sabitri and Hardinath-1 among the improved varieties, while Gorakhnath 509 dominates the hybrid category. The study applied the Shannon-Wiener Index to analyze genetic diversity, evenness, and richness among rice varieties. The diversity index for the rice genotype in Khairahani was 2.87, indicating an effective number of varieties of 17.71, a richness score of 32, and an evenness score of 0.49, suggesting moderate to high rice diversity. Agro-vets are the main suppliers of seeds, which were found to be 47%, 15% from preserved seeds, 49% from both agro-vet and preserved sources, 15% from co-operatives, and 13% from neighbors. The study suggested that registered hybrids varieties are prevalent due to higher yields, and easy accessibility, but local landraces are at risk due to their low production. Therefore, approaches aimed at promoting local rice varieties are essential for protecting genetic diversity in Khairahani municipality, Chitwan district.
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