The Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s National Research Centre for Banana (ICAR-NRCB) in Tiruchi released two new varieties of banana, Kaveri Thangam and Kaveri Nadan, marking its Foundation Day celebrations here on Friday.

The varieties have been released after 15 years of research and extensive field trials across the country to assess their quality, R. Selvarajan, Director, ICAR-NRCB, told reporters.

Kaveri Thangam is a premium quality variety, rich in Provitamin A with a unique aroma and yellow pulp. The variety has nearly 10 times higher vitamin A than conventional varieties. “Given the fruit’s golden yellow hue, we named it as Kaveri Thangam (gold). I expect it to become popular very soon. The fruit is firm and has a shelf life of 15 days from the day of harvest. It is resistant to weevils,” Dr. Selvarajan said.

Kaveri Nadan, is a high-yielding variety which provides almost double the yield of the regular variety. “The variety can give a yield of up to 75 tonnes per hectare,” he said.

With the theme of the Foundation Day celebrations this year being Super El Nino, the meet discussed ways to mitigate the impact of the phenomenon not only banana but in other crops too such as paddy.

The area under banana in Tiruchi district has come down by 2,000 hectares to 4,000 hectares this year due to the poor monsoon and availability of water. If the situation continued next year too, the area will come down further. “We need to improve on water management. We have developed a AI and sensor-based irrigation system which helps conserve water even more than drip irrigation system. Banana farmers can use such systems to protect the standing crops. Technologies such as mulching and removal of leaves older than eight days can also help,” he said.

Dr. Selvarajan said the NRCB will be extending technical support for exporting nendran banana to the Middle East. “The district Collector had convened a meeting recently to discuss the scope for banana exports from here. We suggested that nendran variety can be exported as Tiruchi is known for it. He has identified four clusters and is planning to promote farmers producers organisations exclusively for exporting nendran banana via Cochin port. We will provide training to farmers on producing nendran bananas of export quality,” Dr. Selvarajan added.

K.B. Hebbar, Director, ICAR-Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasargod, who was the chief guest of the event, said the Super El Nino had caused concern among the people as there had been a deficit in rainfall. “For one or two years, the situation may not be very congenial for the crops. The effect of the phenomenon on perennial crops may be felt for two to three years. We need to be cautious and adopt technologies available to minimise the impact of the adverse conditions,” he said and underlined the importance of using quality planting material and guarding against neglecting soil health to mitigate the impact of the phenomenon.

Scientists and experts from various agencies participated in the event.

Published - August 21, 2026 06:53 pm IST