Abstract
Exploitation of hybrid vigour has led to a dramatic increase in yield and resistance performance in several crops. However, maintenance of genetic purity during large-scale production of hybrid seeds is a long-standing constraint in both public research organisations and the seed industry. This affects both the breeding efficiency as well as the supply of pure seed to growers. In a number of crop species, the seed production guidelines and procedures are ineffective in maintaining genetic purity of seed and were also found inadequate to meet the huge demand for quality seed. A new quality seed production scheme is proposed herewith that integrates the traditional seed production system and modern genetic marker technology. The DNA-marker-based assay is rapid, cost-effective, and can detect hidden genetic contamination of seed. We have also demonstrated the application of a seed testing model in pigeonpea hybrids. Our scheme is suitable not only for pigeonpea but in general for all crops.