Nearly a decade-and-a-half after it was first released for cultivation, a popularpearl millethybrid has made a comeback in an improved avatar inGujarat.
Christened Maru Sona or desert gold, the new version is equipped with the genes to fend
viewBox="0 0 576 512">Maru Sona is Gujarats first hybrid cultivar that is developed through genomics-assisted breeding.
The original hybrid GHB 538 was first released for cultivation in 2006-07 during rainy, post-rainy and summer seasons in dry regions of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana. It quickly became popular.