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Abstract
Zinc deficiency one of the major concerns leading to causing major diseases including death. Across the developing countries, rice is staple food and a vital source of nutrients however deficient in Zinc. Biofortification is the effective approach to combat hidden hunger. Rice (Oryza Sativa L.) grains lose valuable nutrients upon polishing. Across crops, deficit irrigation, a mechanism of artificially inducing drought, is known to have positive impact on micronutrient content. Naturally occurring drought may have positive impacts on grain nutritive value. The present study with 12 super elite rice genotypes grown under contrasting water regime (aerobic and wetland conditions at GKVK in RCBD during kharif 2015 and summer 2016 gave strong indications of biofortified rice. Determination of Zinc content was done using X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy method in Brown Rice and varied level of polishing. High Zinc content in brown rice in kharif, Azucena; 40.23 ppm and AM 1; 33.17 ppm; in summer and varied level of polishing – 5% polished, AM 72; 34.93 ppm in kharif and AM 65; 27.80 ppm in summer, - 10% polished AM 72; 31.53 ppm in kharif and AM 65 26.80 in summer was observed in aerobic condition in both the seasons as compared to wetland.