Genetic and molecular diversity analysis of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) genotypes grown under rice fallow condition

Fifteen agro-morphological traits and seventeen SSR primers were used in sixteen chickpea cultivars to study genetic diversity among the accessions and their subsequent classification. Sixteen genotypes were grouped into 5 clusters, out of which cluster I was the largest comprising 11 genotypes. Out of 17 primers screened, 15 showed polymorphism with an average 0.16 hetrozygocity and 0.763 similarity coefficients. Cluster analysis revealed two and five groups based on morphological and molecular markers, respectively. Genetic diversity assessment with different methods and their comparison could provide complementary information for improvement of chickpea.