India unveils ‘world’s first’ genome-edited rice varieties

To boost yields by up to 30%, cut paddy cultivation area

- SANDIP DAS

IN A FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND initiative, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed the country's first genome-edited, climate-resilient rice varieties aimed at boosting yields and conserving water.

Unveiling the breakthrough on Sunday, agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the two indigenously developed rice varieties could potentially increase grain yields by 25-30%.

The varieties Kamala and Pusa DST Rice 1, developed by the Indian Institute of Rice Research, Hyderabad and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Delhi, respectively, will be ready for commercial cultivation in the next four to five years.

These are not genetically modified seeds involving the insertion of a foreign gene, so they do not require approval from the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) for commercial cultivation.