Directorate of Poultry Research

The soil and tissue nutrient survey was carried out in 12 blocks representing all the major sugarcane growing soils of the Nizamabad and Kamareddy Districts. As per the critical levels suggested for sugarcane, nearly 80.3, 9.45, 10.02, 25.9, 18.9 and 62.2 per cent of the plant tissue samples are deficient in N, P, K, Cu, Fe and Zn, respectively. Adequate amounts of Mn was noticed in all the sugarcane plant tissues. The data regarding fertility parameters of the sugarcane growing soils nearly 47.24, 91.33, 13.38 and 34.64 per cent of soils are deficient in organic carbon, N, P2O5 and Zn respectively. Adequate amounts of K, Cu, Fe and Mn was noticed in all the sugarcane growing soils. Results on nutrient content of soils and plants, it can be confirmed that the nitrogen deficiency in plants is a reflection of its deficiency in soils. But even though, there is no deficiency of potassium in soils its deficiency in plants is up to 10 per cent. Phosphorus is high in soils and the same is also reflected in plants. Regarding micronutrients, the deficiencies of Zn in soils is also reflected in plants also. But copper deficiency was observed in plants, in spite of the soils were sufficient.

The adsorption and leaching behaviour of the herbicide topramezone was investigated in two different soils—red sandy loam (Alfisol) and black clay (Vertisol)—from maize-growing regions of Telangana, India. Laboratory batch equilibrium experiments were conducted to quantify the adsorption characteristics of topramezone using the Freundlich isotherm model. The red soil was neutral with medium organic carbon and low CEC (cmol(p⁺) kg⁻¹), whereas the black soil was slightly alkaline with low organic carbon and higher CEC (cmol(p⁺) kg⁻¹). Adsorption increased with equilibrium concentration in both soils, ranging from 3.55 µg g⁻¹ in red soil and 2.68 µg g⁻¹ in black soil at 5 µg mL⁻¹ to 28.98 µg g⁻¹ and 24.98 µg g⁻¹, respectively, at 50 µg mL⁻¹. The adsorption isotherms exhibited an S-shaped, nonlinear pattern that fitted well to the Freundlich equation, confirming heterogeneous sorption sites (1/n < 1). Higher Freundlich coefficients (kf = 0.733; kfoc = 130.9) in red soil compared to black soil (kf = 0.481; kfoc = 98.2) indicated stronger sorption under slightly acidic conditions. The reduced adsorption in alkaline black soil was attributed to the predominance of the dissociated anionic form of topramezone (pKa = 4.06) and electrostatic repulsion from negatively charged colloids. The results demonstrate that soil pH and organic carbon are the dominant factors influencing topramezone adsorption, while clay content and CEC play lesser roles. Weaker sorption and higher mobility in black soils suggest a relatively higher leaching potential, emphasizing the need for site-specific management strategies for the safe use of topramezone in maize-based cropping systems under semi-arid tropical conditions.

The experiment was done under a 50% shade net during 2023-24 and 2024-25 at College of Horticulture, Rajendranagar, SKLTGHU. The experiment was laid out in completely randomized design with three replicates, The results showed that during 2023-24, 2024-25 and pooled, the physiological parameters viz., maximum leaf area index (2.28, 2.28, 2.28), specific leaf weight (g/cm2) (0.005, 0.005, 0.005) was recorded in T4: Salicylic acid 200 ppm whereas the minimum specific leaf area (cm2/g) (186.88, 200.05, 192.91) was recorded in T4: Salicylic acid 200 ppm. In case of quality parameters the highest visual plant grade (4.80, 4.73, 4.77) and visual colour grade (4.60, 4.47, 4.53) was recorded in T4: Salicylic acid 200 ppm, whereas the highest chlorophyll content (43.33, 42.64, 42.98) was recorded in T1: Benzyladenine 150 ppm.

The field experiment was carried out using 72 rice genotypes at Agricultural Research Station, Kampasagar, Nalgonda district which is located at geographical co-ordinates of 16.8536 N latitude and 79.4569 longitudes. Analysis of variance revealed significant genotypic difference for all the traits studied indicating that a large amount of variability present in germplasm and there is a scope for selecting promising genotypes to develop salinity tolerant rice varieties. The values of genotypic and phenotypic coefficients of variation (GCV and PCV) were moderate for Total no. of tillers/plant (16.72 and 17.70), No. of effective tillers/plant (15.82 and 17.90) and spikelet fertility (%) (19.14 and 20.38), grain length (mm) (12.83 and 13.62) and grain breadth (15.54 and 16.01); low for days to 50% flowering (6.72 and 696). Selection for these traits would offer better scope for genotypes A close difference between phenotypic and genotypic coefficient of variation revealed that there was a little influence of environment on the expression of the character studied. Selection for these traits would offer better scope for development of these traits. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance as percent of mean was observed for all the traits except for plant height and reproductive stage salinity stage scoring indicating the preponderance of additive type of gene action for the expression of this characters and selection may be effective for improving this character. The study of simple correlation in the present investigation suggested that positive and significant assosiation of yield with number of filled grains per panicle (0.8477**), spikelet fertility (0.6621**), productive tillers (0.4107**) test weight (0.4105**) panicle length (0.2864**), plant height (0.2815**). However, it exhibited significant and negative correlation with seedling mortality (-0.9124**Present study revealed that there was good amount of genetic variability in the traits number of effective tillers per plant, panicle length, grains/panicle and test weight, selection would be more effective for developing these traits.

Climate change is one of the important factors in livestock sector affecting their production and reproduction. India has large areas of highly productive coastal ecosystems which include approximately 5,000 km2 of mangroves, 1,700 km2 of salt marshes, 177,000 km2 of seagrass ecosystems and approximately 2,300 km2 of coral reefs. Different human activities are causing damage to the coastal ecosystems thus climate change is having detrimental effects via global warming, thereby increasing the severity as well as frequency of cyclones and associated storms, acidification of seawater, occurrence of floods and increased air and water temperature. Studies suggest that if sea temperature rises by 2 to 4°C, the intensity of cyclones hitting the coastal areas can rise by 10-20%. Increased frequencies of extreme weather conditions, floods, and lack of rain will degrade grasslands, fodder production and quality of the fodder. Thus, the livestock as well as the keepers need to be resilient to the changing environment and continue to improve their production to meet the demand from the growing population. According to IPCC, resilience is defined as the capacity of social, economic and environmental systems to cope with a hazardous event or trend or disturbance by responding or reorganizing in a way to maintain their essential function, identity and structure while also maintaining the capacity for adaptation, learning and transformation. In time weather forecasting for early warning of hazardous weather events will allow the farmers to save the animals from bad weather conditions like severe heat, cold waves, heavy rains thunderstorms, cyclones and floods. Adopting several strategies like use of locally adapted breeds/varieties, genetic improvement of animals, scientifically designed housings, improving diets, better herd and grassland management, establishment of climate resilient smart villages with shelters for man and animals during climatic havoc, etc., will help in combating with the changing climate.

SUMMARY In the poultry sector, sex determination of a one-day-old chick is one of the critical activities. Current sexing methods include cloacal examination, feather sexing, genetic testing, etc. However, there are limitations in using these methods, such as operational difficulties, high costs involved, effective for only certain breeds, and the need for highly skilled workers. In recent years, there has been growing interest in using chicken vocalisations for stress detection, health monitoring and welfare study as they are non-invasive, cheaper and also provide valuable information. Sounds produced by male and female birds vary greatly due to anatomical variation in vocal organs and vocalisation mechanisms. Analyzing the sound signals can help determine the sex of birds. Gender determination of birds using vocalisation analysis started with wild monomorphic birds because of the difficulty in capturing and restraining them for wildlife studies or management. Voice-based sexing using separate calls or duet calls can be used for sex identification of adult birds of more than 69 species from 16 orders. In adult birds, distinct differences in the voice of male and female birds because of the fully developed organs, makes it easier to identify. However, the task is tough in one day old chicks where the vocal organs not fully matured. However, recent studies showed the potential of chicken vocalisations for the determination of gender of one day old chick. However, there are still a lot of challenges in collecting the audio signals from chicks, processing the data and analysis and automating the process. Considering that the use of audio signals for sex determination is non-invasive, efficient, less labour-intensive, as research in this domain advances, the technology may represent a feasible alternative to the current gender determination techniques for routine use in commercial hatcheries especially in developing countries.

A study was conducted to measure the species composition and diversity of various stored grain insect pests in fortified rice collected from different districts of Telangana,India during 2023-2024. Theresults indicated that a total of six species of stored grain insects belonging to three orders viz., Coleoptera (3), Lepidoptera (2) and Psocoptera (1) were recorded in fortified rice. The six insect species were rice weevil, Sitophilus oryzae, Saw toothed beetle, Oryzaephilus surinamensis, redflour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, Angoumois grain moth, Sitotroga cerealella, rice moth, Corcyra cephalonica and pscocids. Among all these insects highest population of O. surinamensis was recorded in four districts of Telangana except in Ranga reddy and Nalgonda. The diversity indices indicated that Shannon-weiner diversity index (H) was high in Warangal district samples(H=1.426) while the Jagtial population recorded highest Margalef’s species richness index (R=1.27). The highest Pielou’s evenness index was reported from Nalgonda district (e=75), and Simpson diversity index of stored grain pests was found to be maximum (0.718) in Warangal district rice samples. The knowledge on species composition and diversity helps in planning timely management strategies for stored grain pests.

With the rampant usage of antibiotics as growth promoters (AGPs) in poultry sector, there has been alarming concerns of antimicrobial resistant microbes such as Escherichia coli. Diversification of poultry farming due to consumer demand for safer products with higher protein content, turkey production is gaining popularity. Feed additives such as formic acid (FA) and thymol (TH) are effectively replacing AGPs due to their antimicrobial action. This directed the researchers to find alternatives to antibiotics such as thymol and formic acid because of their strong antimicrobial, anti-oxidative, digestive-stimulating properties. To assess the efficacy of FA and TH as growth promoters and their effect on the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) load, the current study (0-12 weeks) was conducted in CARI VIRAT turkey poults (n = 256; unsexed) those were randomly distributed into eight treatment groups: control(T1), AGP (T2), graded levels of FA (T3 to T5) @ 2.5, 5 and 7.5ml/kg and TH (T6 to T8) @ 120, 240 and 350mg/kg. Cloacal swab samples were collected at 0, 4th, 8th and 12th week interval and processed further for isolation, identification and assessment of resistance profile of E. coli. The final body weight, cumulative gain and FCR were significantly (p < 0.05) better for birds under supplementation. The Total plate count (TPC) and coliforms showcased a significant (p < 0.001) reduction in the FA and TH supplement groups as compared to control and AGP group. The resistance profile indicated E. coli isolates from AGP group with significantly (p < 0.001) highest resistivity against antibiotics (viz. chloramphenicol, tetracycline, nalidixic acid, chlortetracycline) while isolates from FA (T5) and TH (T8) groups were the least resistant. blaAmpC gene was significantly (p < 0.001) harbored in T2 isolates whereas least detected in T5 and T8. It was inferred that formic acid (7.5ml/kg) and thymol (360mg/kg) can effectively replace AGPs and lower AMR burden in poultry.