Assessment of deep-water rice varieties under east and south eastern coastal plain agro climatic zone of Odisha

Climate change poses significant challenges to agricultural productivity, particularly in regions prone to extreme rainfall events similar as flooding. To address these challenges, On- Farm Testing (OFT) of three deep water rice kinds — TO1 CR Dhan 508, TO2 Cv. CR Dhan 506, and TO3 Cv. CR Dhan 505 was conducted and compared with the medium-tolerant variety Pooja (As the growers' practice). The study was carried out at seven growers' fields in Jatipur and Basudeipur townlets of Sakhigopal, Puri, during the Kharif 2023- 24 season under the guidance of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Puri. The results of the OFT indicated that cv. CR Dhan 508 displayed superior agronomic performance, recording the highest number of panicles per forecourt cadence (344), the longest panicle length (22.4 cm), the highest number of filled grains per panicle (112), and the heaviest grain weight (22.6 g). Also, cv. CR Dhan 508 achieved the loftiest grain yield (46.2 q/ ha), net return (₹ 47,855/ ha), and return per rupee invested (1.90), followed nearly by cv. CR Dhan 505. These findings punctuate the eventuality of cv. CR Dhan 508 as a promising deep water rice variety that can enhance productivity and profitable returns for growers in flood tide-prone areas, thereby contributing to climate- flexible agricultural practices.