The persistence and performance (growth promoting potential) of green fluorescent protein (gfp) marked Azotobacter chroococcum strain ABR 4G were studied in sterilized and unsterilized wheat rhizospheric soil. The gfp was integrated via Tn 5 transposition into A. chroococcum chromosome and the resultant gfp marked colonies were identified by green fluorescent emission under UV light. The gfp was stably maintained in A. chroococcum and the gfp insertion had no apparent adverse effect on the growth promoting properties of the marked soil isolate ABR 4G. The growth promoting properties ( nitrogen fixation, ammonia excretion, phosphate solubilization and IAA production) of the parent soil isolate and the gfp marked strain were found to be almost the same. All the quantitative wheat plant traits were significantly influenced by inoculation of A. chroococcum ABR 4G strain in sterilized and unsterilized soil. Inoculated bacterial counts increased gradually in wheat rhizosphere, reached maximum on 60th d and declined on 80th d. Fertility levels also affected survival of marked strain and the survival was comparable in sterilized and unsterilized soil. The growth promoting properties were also determined from the marked strain reisolated from wheat rhizosphere in both types of soil. Fig 1, Tab 2, Ref 22