Paper Title
Constraints in Saffron Production and Their Management Strategies in India

Abstract
Saffron (Crocus sativusL.) world’s most sought after and expensive spice is an important spice cash crop of Kashmir. There are more than 2 lakh people who are directly or indirectly involved with the saffron trade. The crop covers an area of 5000 acres (2023 ha) in Jammu and Kashmir. Saffron is especially grown in uplands and karewa areas of Kashmir valley especially Pampore and adjoining areas. The other place where saffron is grown are Budgam, Pulwama and Anantnag, in Kashmir valley and Kishtwar, Doda district in Jammu Division. Saffron covers about 4% of total cultivated areas of Kashmir valley and provides about 6% of total agricultural income (Mir,1992).The yield of saffron dwindle year after year. The average productivity in J&Kreached to 2.7 kg as against 3.29 kg/ha in 1997. The decline in production continues through the newer areas are being are brought under its cultivation. The intensive cultivation and mono-culturingof saffron insaffrongrowing belts of valley together with the continual use of diseased material resulted in frequent occurrence of saffron corm rot diseases incited by pathogens like Phomacrocrophila, Rhizoctoniacrocorum (sheath blight and corm rot),, Fusarium moniliforme varintermedium, non sporulatingbasidiomycetous fungus, Macrophominaphaseolina, Fusariumoxysporum, F. solani, F. pallidoroseum, F.equiseti, Mucorspp, Penicilliumspp,Sclerotiumrolfsii. Of these diseases, corm rot of saffroncaused by Fusariumoxysporum and F. solani is considered most destructiveand takes considerable proportion of the produce every year. Dhar(1992) reported 6.7 to 15.2 per cent corm rot disease incidence and observed that none of the saffron growing areas in Kashmir valley was free from this disease. Thakur (1997), however, reported corm rot incidence to the magnitude of 70 to 85 per cent in saffron growing fields of Kashmir. Symptoms caused by important fungal corm rot pathogens are briefly described as under: Rhizoctoniacrocorum: The fungus attacks the cormafter penetrating through the protective covers and cause the symptoms known as sheath blight. Phomacrocophila: The fungus attacks the corm transferring their colour from white to yellow. Ultimately turning it black and resulting in destruction of entire corm. Sclerotiumrolfsii: Symptoms appeared as brown to dark brown sunken, irregular patches below corm scales. Lesions are usually 1 mm deep with raised margins. The foliage of severely infected corms start drying from tip downward.White fungal mycelia appear on the bulbs that rot at later stages of disease development. Sclerotiaare formatted which arehard, brown to black and about 1 to 2.1 mm in diameter with pseudoparenchymatous rind. Fusariumspp: The disease is characterised bypoor growth and wilting of saffron plants besides causing damping off and basal stem rot. The corm rot causing symptoms are mostly localised in root and bud region. The affected cormsyieldyellow foliage after bloom which gets scratched easily. Key words: Saffron, Crocus sativusL.Saffron production, management strategies