Assessment of Variability, Heritability, Genetic Advance and Correlation in Elite Germplasm of Moth Bean [Vigna aconitifolia (Jacq.)]

Background: Moth bean [Vigna aconitifolia (Jacq.)] is an important leguminous crop known for its drought resistance and nutritional value. Methods: This study evaluates genetic variability, Heritabilit correlation among 20 elite moth bean genotypes. Conducted at ITM University, Gwalior, the experiment followed a randomized block design (RBD) with three replications. Eleven quantitative traits, including seed yield, harvest index and protein content, were analyzed. Result: Indicating involvement of environmental effects, phenotypic coefficients of variation (PCV) were consistently higher than genotypic coefficients of variation (GCV). The highest GCV was observed for harvest index (27.99%), seed yield per plant (26.16%) and number of pods per plant (21.76%), suggesting high genetic variability. Heritability in broad sense was very high for number of seeds per pod (98.82%), harvest index (98.80%), number of pods per plant (98.40%) and seed yield (96.84%). Genetic advance as percent of mean was highest for harvest index (57.32%), seed yield per plant (53.03%) and number of pods per plant (44.04%), indicating the potential for substantial improvement through selection. Correlation analysis revealed strong positive associations between seed yield and harvest index (r=0.958) and number of pods per plant (r = 0.854) at genotypic level, suggesting these as key contributors to yield enhancement. These findings provide valuable insights for genetic improvement and breeding strategies aimed at enhancing moth bean productivity.