Pariksha SaathiPIB backgrounder: ICAR-CPRI's purple potato Kufri Jamunia, a biofortified variety richer in vitamin C, iron and zinc
A PIB backgrounder of 18 October 2026 profiles Kufri Jamunia, a purple-fleshed potato variety officially released in 2024 by the ICAR-Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI) to help address hidden hunger, a lack of essential vitamins and minerals despite adequate calorie intake. Biofortification raises a crop's nutrient content through plant breeding, unlike conventional fortification, which adds nutrients during processing. Kufri Jamunia has higher levels of ascorbic acid, anthocyanins and carotenoids than CPRI's earlier coloured varieties Kufri Neelkanth (2018), the first purple-skinned specialty variety, and Kufri Manik (2021); per 100 g it contains 42.75 mg of vitamin C against 23.15 mg in a common potato, 2.28 mg of zinc against 0.28 mg and 3.22 mg of iron against 0.57 mg. A medium-maturing variety, it yields 32-35 tonnes per hectare under recommended practices, has 6-8 weeks of dormancy and stores well, and is recommended for the North Indian plains.
Drafted with AI assistance from the official PIB release linked above and checked against it by a second AI pass. Not line-edited by a human.
Learning context
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), formerly the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research, was established on 16 July 1929 as a registered society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, following the report of the Royal Commission on Agriculture. It is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, headquartered in New Delhi, and the apex body for coordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture, including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences. Its system spans 113 ICAR institutes and 74 agricultural universities.
Check yourself: how does biofortification differ from conventional food fortification?
Biofortification raises nutrient levels in the crop itself through plant breeding, while conventional fortification adds nutrients during processing.
Revision task: from this backgrounder, note the variety’s release year, its nutrient figures against a common potato, its yield and the region it suits, and keep them apart from the standing facts about ICAR above.
Test yourself
Which institute developed Kufri Jamunia, the biofortified purple potato profiled by PIB on 18 October 2026?
Show the answer
Answer: ICAR-Central Potato Research Institute
Kufri Jamunia was released in 2024 by ICAR-CPRI, which also developed the coloured varieties Kufri Neelkanth (2018) and Kufri Manik (2021).
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