Skip to content

Pusa Decomposer (capsule) Photo: Vignesh Chandran · Pexels License · source ↗

Pusa Decomposer (capsule)

Pusa Decomposer is a microbial consortium product developed at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, and launched in 2020 for in-situ decomposition of paddy stubble. It is supplied as four small capsules per acre containing seven fungal strains - primarily Aspergillus and Trichoderma spp. - cultured to break down lignified rice straw within 20-25 days, making it the principal recommended alternative to stubble burning.

What it is

Each Pusa Decomposer kit contains four capsules formulated from cellulolytic and lignolytic fungi screened for tropical paddy-wheat rotation conditions. The strains are non-pathogenic to crops, animals or humans and have been licenced by IARI to private bio-input companies, state agriculture departments and farmer-producer organisations for large-scale supply.

How to use

The four capsules per acre are dissolved in 5 L of water along with 150 g jaggery and 50 g chickpea flour (besan). The mixture is fermented for 4-5 days in a covered drum kept at ambient temperature, with periodic stirring. The resulting 25 L stock is diluted to about 200-250 L of spray solution per acre and applied with a power sprayer or pumpkin nozzle onto chopped paddy stubble within 0-3 days after combine harvest. A light irrigation follows to maintain residue moisture for microbial activity. Wheat is sown with a Happy Seeder or super seeder through the residue after 18-25 days.

Adoption

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), state agriculture departments of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, and IARI have promoted Pusa Decomposer since 2020-21 as a centerpiece of the national action plan against rice-stubble burning (Rice Stubble Burning Punjab Haryana). Supply has scaled from 0.5 million acres in 2020-21 to over 5 million acres treated annually by 2024-25. Distribution is through state extension offices, KVKs and licenced manufacturers, often free of cost or at heavily subsidised rates.

Limitations

Decomposition rates fall in cool, dry late-October conditions and in fields where straw is left in long, uncut "anchor" rows by the combine. Practical decomposition takes 18-25 days against the 7-10 day turnaround many farmers want before wheat sowing - making the practice unworkable without complementary residue-management machinery. Heavy stubble loads above 5 t/ha require thorough chopping by a super-SMS rotor for adequate spray coverage. Side-by-side trials show decomposition extent comparable to NCOF Waste Decomposer (Rice Bio Decomposer Paddy Residue).

See also Rice Bio Decomposer Paddy Residue, Rice Stubble Burning Punjab Haryana, In Situ Residue Decomposition, Mulching Organic Residue.

Sources

  1. Pusa Decomposer Capsules: A Solution to Paddy Straw Burning. ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi.
  2. Pusa Decomposer for In-Situ Management of Paddy Straw. Press Information Bureau, Government of India.