1. Wheat genotypes were evaluated for traits and genes contributing drought tolerance under field conditions.
2. In vitro  screening  for root traits  could be helpful in identifying promising genetic resource for mining drought responsive genes in wheat.
3. Wheat genotype, IC-549394, identified with higher expression of drought responsive genes, i.e, CBF4 and CDPK-19.
4. VIGS approach  optimised to silence Ethylene-insensitive gene in soybean for enhancing drought tolerance.

Fig. 1. In vitro root system architecture of wheat genotypes

Fig. 2. Quantitave expression profiling  of CBF4 (a) and CDPK19 (b) gene after 81 DAS in wheat

Fig. 3 Expression profiling of WRKY, PRI, PR3 and EIN genes in soybean plants

Mock                                                   Vector alone                                        EIN2-silenced

Fig. 4 Phenotype of mock, vector alone infected and EIN VIGS-silenced soybean plants.

1. Chlorophyll fluorescence based technique revealed more tolerance in T. durum than in T. aestivum
2. Chlorophyll fluorescence can be used as stress indicator in crop plants

Fig. 5. Chlorophyll fluorescence showing more tolerance in in T. durum than in T. aestivum

1. Bradyrhizobium with Rtx gene improved soybean yield in murrum soil by enhancing nodules and  N-fixation.
2. Sorghum endophytes with multi-PGP traits confer stress tolerance 

Fig. 6. The effect of multi-PGP trait root-bacterial endophytes on root growth under water stress imposed condition and symbiotic effectiveness of  Rtx producing and non-Rtx producing

1. Low cost  indigenous phenotyping tools  developed prototypes to screen large number of genotypes in the field for canopy temperature and leaf senescence
2. This can be used as tools for robust and rapid image based  data analysis

Phenomics platform was employed to identify mungbean genotype producing more biomass with less water relative to Vaibhav (local check )

1. The regulated deficit irrigation (RDI_0.8 i.e 0.8xETc) did not affect the marketable fruit yield (MFY) as compared with the full irrigation (FI; 78.0 Mg ha^-1).  The water productivity of 19.2 kg m^-3 was the maximum under RDI_0.8.
2. The MFY was improved by 4% with DI_0.6 at vegetative stage while DI_0.6 at flowering stage showed little effect and a decline of 7% was monitored with DI_0.6 at fruiting stage_. The DI_0.6 applied at either of two stages vegetative & flowering, flowering & fruiting and vegetative & fruiting resulted in 14-18% decline in MFY.
3. Fruit quality and functional food properties improved with DI. Color (a/b* ratio) and the concentrations of vitamin C increased by 82 and 70% with irrigation of RDI_0.6 compared to FI. With-holding irrigation during fruit development induced color development (52%), vitamin C content (16% ) and recorded better lycopene content (10.2 mg/100 g).
4. The total phenolics and flavonoids ranged between16 and 42 mg gallic acid equivalent/100 g and 4–10 mg catechin equivalent/100 g respectively with higher values recorded under DI at fruiting stage. Antioxidant activity (AOA) tested with different in vitro assays revealed the positivity of DI on improvement of bioactive compounds. Superoxide dismutase activity was significantly higher in DI treatments at fruiting stage compared to catalase activity.