It’s not quite the hotshot staple among vegetarians, but kesari dal, or Lathyrus sativus, has been in the news. It first shot to notoriety in February 1961, when it was prohibited under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, after it was found to be unsafe for human consumption. Now, the pulse is set to hit the headlines again. The kesari dal, which has been known to cause a paralysing disease, lathyrism or neurolathyrism, may be safe for consumption if the researchers at the Indira Gandhi Agriculture University, Raipur, are to be believed. Th team claims to have developed a variety of kesari pulse which has just 0.1 per cent of oxalyl di-amino propionic (ODAP) acid instead of the debilitating six per cent toxins in the common variety. The new variety has been developed after over 10 years of research by the university, says Dr A.S.R.A.S. Sastri, director (research), IGAU. “We have successfully brought down the high ODAP toxin level and it could help farmers as well as poor people looking for a cheap source of protein. We have already conducted successful field trials and will soon make a presentation before the government. Once we get the nod, we will lobby for the removal of kesari dal from the prohibited crop list under the PFA Act,” says Sastri. Despite a ban on its cultivation, the pulse continues to be grown in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Orissa and has also been reported from Maharashtra, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Assam and Gujarat. In fact, Chhattisgarh accounts for most of the production and six lakh hectares are devoted to the crop each year, with an average yield of one tonne per hectare, says Sastri.The seed looks like Bengal gram, and like other pulses, it is a good source of protein, but for its toxin which affects the nerves. Lathyrism is characterised by a gradual paralysis of the lower limbs and occurs mostly in adults who consume the pulse in large quantities.“Poor agricultural labourers eat it because it’s cheap. Diets, which contain over 30 per cent of this dal over a period of two-six months, result in neurolathyrism,” says Dr R.L. Pande, who has been actively involved in the research. “The toxin in the lathyrus seed has been identified. It penetrates the blood-brain barrier and can be removed from the dal by simply soaking the seeds in hot water and rejecting the water or by consuming the dal after removing its coat,” he adds. However, as the dal is used without these safety measures or mixed with other pulses, toxin intake has been reported from various parts of the country. With the new variety set to be launched, the dal will hopefully lose its toxic tag soon.
