INVESTIGATIONS ON EXPLOITATION OF HETEROSIS IN COTTON (GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM L.) USING MALE STERILITY

Abstract

Although several varieties of cotton were developed and released for commercial cultivation in India, the fIrst hybrid, Hybrid-4, was released in 1970 in Gujarat, followed by Varalaxmi in 1972 in Karnataka. Since then many cotton hybrids have been released for commercial cultivation in the country. Hybrid cotton seed production by hand emasculation and pollination made these hybrids a commercially successful and viable proposition in India, primarily due to cheap labour in comparis9n to the advanced countries. However, the cost of such hybrid cotton seed is 20-25 times higher than that of pure varieties.