In order
to protect our interest in trade and commerce through effective response
to assaults on our intellectual and natural resources, we need to
build certain capabilities within ourselves. Especially with regard
to biotechnology, we need to accelerate our innovations, building
over our bio-resources. Innovations in agriculture, traditional medicines
based on herbs and minerals, and genetic engineering should get top
priority. Secondly, we need to quickly bring in amendments in our
patent laws so that we can be a part of WTO. Thirdly, we need to spread
patent awareness in the country to combat the aggressive West. Documentation
of our traditional knowledge should receive our immediate attention.
The responsibility to ensure these steps lies with scientists, legal
experts and legislators.
1.
Advancement in Science
(A) Innovations in Rice Research
Of course, it is high time that we make some important amendments
in our patent law and enhance the patent awareness amongst our inventors
so as to protect our traditional knowledge and natural resources.
We should learn the lesson that this basmati patent battle has taught
us. We must also gear up to make more innovations in our rice research.
Incidentally, of the dozen World Food Prize awards (the Nobel equivalent
for Food) given out so far, four have gone to rice scientists - two
Indians (Dr M S Swaminathan and Dr Gurdev Khush) and two Americans.
One of the Americans is Dr Henry Beachell, who was instrumental in
Ricetec going in for hybrid basmati.
It may be a coincidence that when the country is assessing the impact
of recent order from USPTO on our rice export business, researchers
at the Assam Agricultural University have discovered a new variety
of rice that can give Basmati a run for its money. It is named as
"Ketoki Joha". Except for its size, it can compete with
basmati in every other respect. After boiling, the size of the basmati
grain is 12 mm while this is 8 mm. its scent (aroma) was much better
than basmati. The Ketoki Joha rice, which is been grown only in Assam,
was being sold for Rs 18 to Rs 20 per kilogram.
Apart from the new rice variety that the Assam Agricultural University
has discovered, in a yet another major breakthrough in rice research,
the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) has developed two
new varieties and one hybrid of rice which hold promise for higher
yield of the crop. After several years of research and high level
of testing, IARI has succeeded in developing two new varieties of
basmati rice -- Pusa Sugandh 2 and Pusa Sugandh 3 -- and a hybrid,
RH10, by crossing these two varieties and all the three are of better
quality and with potentially higher yields than the institute's original
'Pusa Basmati 1'. IARI director Punjab Singh informed that the two
varieties mature 10 to 15 days earlier and give a yield of 10 to 17
per cent higher than the conventional Pusa Basmati 1. These new varieties
are also more disease-resistant.
As against a yield of four tonnes per hectare from Pusa Basmati 1,
the new varieties yielded 4.5 to 5 tonnes per hectare while the hybrid,
RH10, gave a yield of more than five tonnes per hectare. RH-10 is
supposed to have a 45 per cent higher yield than 'Pusa Basmati 1'.
The new varieties and the hybrid are considered suitable for cultivation
in the north-western plains of the country such as UP, Haryana, Punjab,
Delhi and Uttaranchal.
(B) DNA Marker Technology
The former deputy director-general of Indian Council of Agricultural
Research (ICAR) Dr E.A. Siddiq said there was need to raise the international
credibility of basmati. To achieve this the Union ministry of commerce
is planning to get a quality certification system in place through
the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD), Hyderabad.
Scientists at the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD)
in Hyderabad have developed a DNA marker technology that would help
detecting the quality of basmati rice. Indian government is hoping
to arm itself with this new technology to face the stiff international
competition in the multi-million dollar basmati rice market. CDFD,
at the request of Ministry of Commerce, had been trying to extend
this technology for classification of basmati rice varieties. CDFD,
which has now streamlined the DNA marker technology for rice, has
offered to set up and host a rice "genotyping" unit to authenticate
and certify rice meant for export as well as for domestic consumption.
According to the government officials, CDFD proposal for DNA certification
of basmati rice export "is under consideration".
India had been particularly concerned about the so-called "super"
basmati and basmati number-385 exported by Pakistan. These are claimed
to be superior to Indian varieties. However, with the help of this
new technology, the country is now confident of convincing the buyers
about the quality of Indian basmati rice. It is also proposed to set
up a nodal agency for strictly monitoring basmati exports. The Agriculture
Production and Exports Development Agency (APEDA) of the Union government
could itself function as the nodal agency, Dr Siddiq said.
According to Javare Gowda Nagaraju, head of the molecular genetics
lab at CDFD, the 'evolved' varieties obtained by crossing pure basmati
with semi-dwarf rice varieties have the aroma and grain size of basmati
but still fall short of typical basmati in cooking qualities. Using
as many as 15 DNA markers developed in-house and 28 available in public
domain, Nagaraju's team has studied the genetic profiles of both Indian
and Pakistani basmati. They have now conclusively shown that Pakistan's
'super' basmati is an evolved variety and not a true basmati. They
also claim that Pakistan's other variety (number-385) is far removed
genetically from India's ultra basmati (number-370). The DNA marker
technology should be applied to the new hybrid variety developed by
RiceTec to assess its superiority over Indian basmati.....more
