STUDIES ON MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF CuNPs

Groundnut or peanut is one of the important oil seeds in the world. The price of competing oil seeds like soybean, palm oil, sunflower, mustard etc. influences price of groundnut and oil. Asia has the largest area of groundnut cultivation in the world contributing to 67% of the total production. India occupies the third place in regard to acreage and in production. Which provides a rich source of high-quality, edible oil (45¿ 50%), easily digestible protein (23¿25%), minerals, and vitamins. It ranks 13th among the food crops and annual oil seed crops in the world. Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. (teleomorph Athelia rolfsii (Curzi) Tu & Kimbrough) is a devastating soil borne plant pathogenic fungus with a wide host range. Incidence of this pathogen was recorded earlier from West Bengal (India) by different scientists. The mycelium of S. rolfsii survives best in sandy soils, while, the sclerotia survive best in moist, aerobic conditions found at the soil surface. Management of the pathogen is quite difficult due to its polyphagus nature, off-seasonal survivality and wide adaptability.