Area of specialization
Agronomy (Conservation Agriculture, Weed Management, Cropping System Research & Climate Resilient Agronomy)
Research area
Conservation agriculture, carbon farming, weed science, cropping systems research, soil health and climate-resilient agriculture.
Significant research achievements
- Advanced conservation agriculture for rice-based systems in the Indo-Gangetic Plains.
- Demonstrated long-term soil carbon sequestration benefits through pulse diversification.
- Developed sustainable rice–chickpea and rice–wheat–mungbean production systems.
- Quantified the carbon–water–energy–productivity nexus under conservation agriculture.
- Established weed management strategies for conservation agriculture systems and led multi-location evaluation of post-emergence herbicides in chickpea across India.
- Demonstrated sustainable rice-fallow intensification through pulse integration.
- Developed the first machine-harvestable chickpea variety, IPCB 2015-132 (Kundan).
- Registered herbicide-tolerant genetic stocks and supported mechanization in pulses.
- Developed the pigeonpea–wheat–mungbean system for diversification of rice–wheat.
Awards and recognitions
- NAAS Young Scientist Award 2024
- Indian Science Congress Association Young Scientist Award 2017–18
- Young Agronomist Award, Indian Society of Agronomy, 2022
- Young Scientist Award, Farming Systems Research & Development Association, 2025
- Young Scientist Award, Indian Society of Weed Science, 2019
- Young Scientist Award, Indian Society of Pulses Research and Development, 2026
- Best Young Scientist Award (institute level) 2023; Best Team Award for R&D 2019 and 2025
- DST-INSPIRE Fellowship 2012–2014
Publications
Personal information
- Date of joining ICAR
1st July 2015
- Discipline and specialization
Agronomy (Conservation Agriculture, Weed Management, Cropping System Research & Climate Resilient Agronomy)
Training & Exposure
- 4th National Training on ‘Advances in Weed Management’ from 12th to 21st January, 2016.
- Training programme on “Project formulation on climate change mitigation and adaptation” from 7-11 November,2016
- International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) funded training programme on “Advanced experimental designs and statistical analysis for breeding and agronomic trials”.
Professional Information
Contribution to the scientific advancement
- Developed potential of new post-emergence herbicides in mungbean and chickpea.
- Identified pulse inclusive crop rotations under conservation agriculture for improving system productivity, resources-use efficiency and soil health.
- Developed weed seedbank dynamics and carbon sequestration in diversified cropping systems.
- Developed weed management strategies in rice-chickpea rotation in conservation agriculture.
Current area of research
- Weed management strategies for enhancing productivity and sustainability of pulses systems.
- Long-term effect of pulses in cropping systems on soil health and crop productivity.
- Development of climate resilient resource conservation technologies (RCTs) for pulses systems.
- Development of nano-material based microencapsulated formulation of imazethapyr for weed control in pulse crops and minimizes residue dynamics to the environment.
Publications
- C.P. Nath, K.K. Hazra, Narendra Kumara, C.S. Praharaj, S.S. Singh, U. Singh, N.P. Singh(2019). Including grain legume in rice–wheat cropping system improves soil organic carbon pools over time. Ecological Engineering 129: 144–153.
- C.P. Nath, Narendra Kumar, K.K. Hazra, Krishnashis Das, M.S. Venkatesh, M.K. Singh, S.S. Singh, C.S. Praharaj and N.P. Singh (2019). Impact of zero-till residue management and crop diversification with legumes on soil aggregation and carbon sequestration. Soil & Tillage Research 189: 158–167.
- C.P. Nath, K.K. Hazra, U. Singh, C.S. Praharaj, Narendra Kumar, S.S. Singh, N.P. Singh. (2019). Diversification of maize-wheat cropping system with legumes and integrated nutrient management increases soil aggregation and carbon sequestration. Geoderma 353: 308–319.
- C.P. Nath, R. Nandan, V. Singh, S.S. Singh, V. Kumar, K.K. Hazra, S.P. Poonia and R.K. Malik. (2018). Comparative assessment of the relative proportion of weed morphology, diversity, and growth under new generation tillage and crop establishment techniques in rice-based cropping systems. Crop Protection 111: 23–32.
- C.P. Nath, R.P. Dubey, A.R. Sharma, K.K. Hazra, N. Kumar and S. S. Singh. (2018) Evaluation of new generation post-emergence herbicides in Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L) in India. National Acad. Sci. Letters, 41(1):1–5.
Awards and Fellowships
- The Indian Science Congress Association (ISCA) Young Scientist Award in Agriculture and Forestry Sciences section in 2017-18.
- Indian Society of Agronomy Best Ph.D. Thesis Award for the year 2016.
- Indian Society of Weed Science Best Ph.D. Thesis Award for the year 2016..
- Best Trainee Award in 4th National Training on Advances in Weed Management in 2016.
- Institute Best Team Award for the year 2018-19
- DST-INSPIRE Fellowship in 2013 by Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India.