Kanpur, Sept. 25 -- Poor seed quality and rising incidence of mosaic virus are eroding moong yields across districts in central Uttar Pradesh, according to a field survey by the Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR). Farmers complained they were compelled to buy seeds from private firms, only to discover later that the stock was sub-standard, the survey said.

In June this year, under the Union government's Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan, 18 IIPR teams travelled through 800 villages in Etawah, Auraiya, Kannauj, Fatehpur and Kanpur Dehat. Each team, comprising two scientists, interacted with nearly 1.18 lakh farmers to understand field-level constraints and provide advisory support.

The findings highlighted widespread yellowing of moo...