U-K Dist Farmers Contribute 261 Varieties of Paddy Seeds to Proposed Gene Pool

To protect desi seeds and enhance seed diversity, the University of Agriculture Sciences (UAS) Bengaluru, has decided to set up a gene pool of agriculture seeds to which the districts in the state are contributing a variety of agriculture seeds by collecting them directly from the farmers.

- SUBHASH CHANDRA N S @Karwar

Uttara Kannada district has so far contributed 261 varieties of paddy, of which many are rare and endemic to the region.

"The UAS Bengaluru has begun a seed conservation movement where it will be setting up a gene pool of seeds which will have a variety of paddy. They will be collected from the farmers. The programme aims to have about 1,000 varieties of paddy and other crops. The initiative involves local farmers. As part of this programme, the farmers from Uttara Kannada have contributed 261 varieties of paddy," Shivaprasad Gaonkar, joint director, Department of Agriculture told TNIE.