Important ICAR Institutes and Their Functions

ICAR is India’s apex body for coordinating agricultural research and education. Its institutes work across crops, soil, livestock, fisheries, and genetic resource conservation to support innovation and scientific farming.

Overview of ICAR

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is an autonomous organization under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. Established on 16 July 1929 as the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research, it has its headquarters in New Delhi. The Union Minister of Agriculture serves as its ex-officio President. It coordinates, guides, and manages agricultural research and education across India.

ICAR Deemed Universities

ICAR manages four main deemed universities. These institutions lead academic education, postgraduate training, and foundational research in their respective fields.

Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi

• Pusa Institute: Popularly known as the Pusa Institute.
• Research areas: Crop sciences, genetics, soil sciences, and agricultural engineering.
• Contribution: Developed high-yielding crop varieties, including Pusa Basmati rice strains.
• Academic role: Offers postgraduate and doctoral degrees in agricultural disciplines.

National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal, Haryana

• Premier dairy centre: India’s leading institute for dairy research and education.
• Focus areas: Dairy breeding, nutrition, milk processing, and dairy economics.
• Notable achievement: Developed cloning techniques for buffaloes, including cloned calves Garima and Shrusti.
• Objective: Improve milk yield and dairy cattle genetics.

Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh

• Oldest institute: Founded in 1889 and among Asia’s oldest veterinary research facilities.
• Research areas: Animal health, veterinary diagnostics, and livestock therapeutics.
• Vaccines: Produces vaccines against Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) and Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR).
• Training: Provides advanced academic training in veterinary sciences.

Central Institute on Fisheries Education (CIFE), Mumbai, Maharashtra

• Apex centre: The top institution for higher education and research in fisheries science.
• Research areas: Marine and freshwater aquaculture, fish genetics, and post-harvest management.
• Technology: Develops breeding technologies for commercially important aquatic species.
• Role: Trains professionals for fisheries and fish processing industries.

Specialized Crop and Soil Research Institutes

Several ICAR institutes focus on specific crops, soil conditions, and cultivation practices.

National Rice Research Institute (NRRI), Cuttack, Odisha

• Focus: Rice breeding, biotechnology, crop protection, and physiology.
• Contribution: Develops rice varieties tolerant to drought, floods, and soil salinity.
• Genetic resource: Maintains a large rice germplasm collection for crop diversity.

Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI), Shimla, Himachal Pradesh

• Focus: Potato breeding, seed technology, and cold storage solutions.
• Techniques: Produces disease-free seed potatoes using aeroponic and tissue culture methods.
• Crop protection: Works against potato blight and pests.

Sugarcane Breeding Institute (SBI), Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu

• Role: Pioneer institute for breeding superior sugarcane varieties for different climates.
• Contribution: Developed the Co varieties of sugarcane cultivated across India.
• Research: Works on sugar recovery and disease-resistant breeding.

Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI), Karnal, Haryana

• Focus: Reclamation of saline, alkaline, and waterlogged soils.
• Work: Designs drainage systems and farming practices for salt-affected lands.
• Contribution: Develops salinity-tolerant crop varieties for mustard, rice, and wheat.

Indian Institute of Soil Science (IISS), Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

• Research: Soil chemistry, microbiology, and soil physics.
• Contribution: Develops soil test kits and technologies for organic farming.
• Focus: Improves soil organic carbon and nutrient efficiency.

National Bureaux for Genetic Resources

These bureaux are responsible for the collection, documentation, and conservation of agricultural biodiversity.

National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi

• Nodal agency: Manages plant genetic resources in India.
• Gene bank: Operates the National Gene Bank with hundreds of thousands of seed samples.
• Function: Conducts quarantine checks for imported seeds and plant material.

National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR), Karnal, Haryana

• Function: Identifies, characterizes, and registers indigenous breeds of livestock and poultry.
• Gene bank: Maintains cryopreserved semen and DNA of native breeds.
• Importance: Protects India’s rights over its animal biodiversity.

National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NBFGR), Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

• Function: Catalogues marine and freshwater fish species across India.
• Research: DNA barcoding, gene banking, and fish health.
• Conservation: Works to protect endangered and endemic fish species.

National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP), Nagpur, Maharashtra

• Function: Maps and classifies soils across agro-ecological zones.
• Use: Prepares land-use plans linking soil potential with suitable crops.
• Assessment: Studies land degradation and gives recovery guidelines.
• Recent achievement: Developed India’s first soil texture map, released on 16 July 2026, with hectare-level digitized soil classification data.
• Method: Used field studies, remote sensing, satellite imagery, and artificial intelligence.
• Current project: Working on mapping soil water retention and absorption capacity, especially for Maharashtra and Southern India.

Key ICAR Institutes and Locations

Key Trivia and Facts

• Svalbard and Chang La: The global seed vault is in Svalbard, Norway, while India’s high-altitude seed vault is at Chang La in Ladakh.
• First cloned buffalo: NDRI, Karnal, produced Samrupa, the world’s first cloned buffalo calf, in 2009.
• Old sugarcane institute: The Sugarcane Breeding Institute at Coimbatore was established in 1912.
• Pusa origin: IARI was originally founded in Pusa, Bihar, in 1905 with a donation from American philanthropist Henry Phipps.
• Institution shift: After the 1934 earthquake, IARI shifted to New Delhi in 1936 but retained the Pusa name.
• Breed registration: NBAGR is the sole official agency in India that certifies and registers new indigenous breeds of cattle, buffalo, goat, sheep, pig, and poultry.

Rare Facts for Prelims

• NBSS&LUP bureau status: It was accorded official bureau status in 1976 and is set to complete 50 years of operations in 2026.
• Golden Jubilee: NBSS&LUP is scheduled to celebrate its Golden Jubilee Foundation Day on 23 August 2026.
• Soil texture: Soil texture refers to the relative proportion of sand, silt, and clay in a soil sample.
• Soil use: Soil texture is crucial for soil classification, irrigation design, land-use planning, and crop suitability assessment.
• Village-level planning: NBSS&LUP’s soil texture map provides village-level data to support agricultural planning and resource allocation.
• Future mapping: NBSS&LUP’s next focus is on soil water retention and absorption capacity, especially in regions with small farm holdings and high local variability.