ICRISAT Scientists Develop Short-Duration Pigeonpea That Tolerates 45°C Heat

 In a significant advancement for Indian agriculture, scientists at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) have developed ICPV 25444—a first-of-its-kind pigeonpea cultivar that can withstand high summer temperatures and mature in just 125 days. 

This heat-tolerant, photo- and thermo-insensitive cultivar has been successfully tested in Karnataka, Odisha, and Telangana states in India, demonstrating yields of 2 tons per hectare. Crucially, it represents a breakthrough in pigeonpea cultivation, enabling the crop to be grown not only during the traditional rainy (kharif) season but also in the extreme heat of summer, where temperatures reach up to 45°C.

Breakthrough for Pigeonpea in India

Until now, pigeonpea cultivation has been limited to specific seasons due to its sensitivity to photoperiod and temperature. ICPV 25444, currently undergoing field trials, marks a turning point—transforming pigeonpea into an all-season crop and opening new opportunities for Indian farmers.

Dr. Himanshu Pathak, Director General, ICRISAT, said, “This breakthrough in developing a summer-adapted pigeonpea cultivar is a shining example of what science can achieve when driven by urgency and purpose. By transforming pigeonpea into an all-season crop, our scientists have delivered a timely solution with the potential to address pulse shortages and the climate challenges faced by farmers across India.”

Developed via Speed Breeding

"This breakthrough was made possible by the world’s first pigeonpea speed-breeding protocol, developed by ICRISAT in 2024. The protocol enabled researchers to grow up to four generations per year, reducing the time required to develop a new variety from 15 years to just five," said Dr. Stanford Blade, Deputy Director General-Research and Innovation, ICRISAT.

ICRISAT has unveiled the world’s first speed-breeding protocol for pigeonpea—an achievement led by Dr. Prakash Gangashetty, Senior Scientist-Pigeonpea Breeding, and his team. Developed over a year, the protocol tackled the complex problem of speeding up the generations of crop improvement and reducing the time it took for the advanced cultivar to be submitted for registration trials to 3-4 years.

By growing pigeonpea in controlled environments—and using space-optimized planting in 4-inch pots—scientists grew 18,000 plants per season in a 2,250 sq ft area to maximize seed generation. The process was further enhanced with advanced genomic technologies using the seed-chipping method.

Addressing India's Pulse Deficit

India produces 3.5 million tons of pigeonpea annually, falling short of demand by 1.5 million tons and resulting in imports worth USD 800 million. The new heat-tolerant variety, ICPV 25444, offers a dual strategy to bridge this gap—by improving yields during kharif on 5 million hectares and expanding cultivation into rice fallows and irrigated summer lands.

Heat-tolerant pigeonpea cultivars offer strong potential for expanding cultivation in India, particularly in 2–3 million ha of tail-end command areas where paddy-paddy, paddy-maize, or paddy-vegetable systems dominate.

Pigeonpea, with a yield potential of 1.5–2 tons/ha, can enhance profitability by USD 234 (₹20,000)/ha. Targeted deployment using remote sensing/GIS, along with improved agronomy and seed systems, could scale adoption to 1 million ha. 

Global Relevance and Future Potential

As climate variability increasingly disrupts traditional farming cycles, ICPV 25444 emerges as a timely innovation. It provides farmers with a climate-resilient, high-value crop that can be grown during unpredictable seasons—enhancing livelihood security and food system sustainability.

“ICRISAT is developing a global trait diversity panel using its pigeonpea genebank collection of 13,000 accessions via the speed-breeding platform. This positions the institute to support breeding programs worldwide, with ongoing collaborations in Asia, Australia, Brazil, Ecuador, and Africa,” said Dr. Sean Mayes, Global Research Program Director, Accelerated Crop Improvement at ICRISAT.

Field Trial in Bagalkot, Karnataka

In Bagalkot, pigeonpea is traditionally grown during the kharif (rainy) season. However, after learning about the new cultivar’s high heat tolerance, two local farmers—Hanumantha Mirji and Basavaraj Ghanti—opted to trial it during the peak summer months. Despite the challenging conditions, the crop performed well under high-density planting, and both farmers reported encouraging results. They expressed optimism about achieving good yields.

Dr. Vijendra S. Sangam, Head of the Varietal Research & Development Center at Karnataka State Seeds Corporation, Dharwad, who monitored the trial, confirmed the crop’s strong field performance.

“ICPV 25444 is a boon for farmers interested in summer pigeonpea cultivation,” said farmer Gururaj Kulkarni. “It matures in just four months, and we observed no signs of disease or pest attacks. We’re happy with the outcome and plan to expand cultivation next summer.”