Recent changes in the lifestyle of people have made a huge impact in the requirement for quality products both in terms of appearance and nutritional value. Although rice production reached self-sufficiency in most of the countries, the quality aspects of rice grains have taken a back seat which is gaining importance in recent time. Plant breeders have made quality as their second most important objective next to yield to suffice the growing population. The current study aims to examine the general combining ability of nine rice genotypes and the specific combining ability of every feasible cross for grain yield and organo-leptic traits in 20 F1s produced via Line x Tester mating design to identify good parents and their specific hybrid combinations outperforming in terms of grain yield and quality. The estimates of SCA variance were revealed greater than GCA variance for all the characters except days to per cent flowering, L/B ratio, kernel length after cooking and kernel breadth after cooking, indicating the preponderance of non-additive gene action for all other traits. Among the parents, Pusa Basmati 1121, Pusa Basmati 1, RNR 15048 and Improved White Ponni were adjudged as the best general combiners for most of the organo-leptic traits and yield related traits. The cross combinations, viz., Pusa Basmati 1121 × Palawan and Pusa Basmati 1121 × TRY 3 were the ideal specific combiners for single plant yield and most of the organo-leptic traits. Out of all the hybrids, these two hybrids showed high kernel elongation without increase in kernel girth after cooking, intermediate amylose content, medium alkali spreading value and soft gel consistency along with adequate amount of yielding ability. Hence, the aforesaid cross combinations may be used in the upcoming breeding programmes to create a higher heterosis for yield and organo-leptic traits and this study may focus on the importance of quality breeding in rice.

Rice, Combining ability, organo-leptic traits, Line x Tester, GCA, SCA, Recombination Breeding

To summarize we can see that the indica and japonica (Palawan and Azucena) genotypes used in the present study are having positive and negative sides in different aspects. The indica genotypes showed both good yielding capacity and organo-leptic properties, while the japonica genotypes showed only good plant type giving out yield but poor organo-leptic traits. The parents, Pusa Basmati 1121 and Pusa Basmati 1 gave out good performance with respect to grain dimensional properties, while the genotypes of japonica type (Palawan and Azucena) along with Improved White Ponni showed good plant types with desirable yielding ability. The cross combination, Pusa Basmati 1121 × Palawan showed good per se performance and sca effects for most of the studied yield attributing traits and the organo-leptic traits. The most important attribute of a premium marketable rice is that it must show good kernel elongation but with decreased breadthwise expansion while cooking, intermediate amylose content, medium alkali spreading value and soft gel consistency. This was providently made by the hybrids, Pusa Basmati 1121 × TRY 3 and Pusa Basmati 1121 × Palawan which can be forwarded to get still more superior recombinants with good yielding as well as good grain dimensional properties fetching premium price in the global rice market.

M. Hemalatha, S. Geetha, R. Saraswathi, M. Raveendran and G. Hemalatha (2023). Study on Combining Ability of Organo-leptic Traits in Rice (Oryza sativa L.). Biological Forum – An International Journal, 15(8): 65-76.