Scientists at IARI have red-flagged the illegal cultivation of high-yielding Pusa Basmati varieties in Pakistan

Posted 21 Mar 2024

2 min read

IARI scientists have raised objections and called for action against Pakistan as it has officially registered India’s high-yielding Pusa Basmati varieties and also cultivating the same illegally.

These varieties, originally developed by IARI, include:
- Pusa Basmati-1121 (PB-1121) known for the extra kernel length of its grains.
- PB-1509, which matures in 115-120 days as against the 135-145 days of other high-yielding basmati varieties.
- PB-1847, PB-1885 and PB-1886 (all improved versions of PB-1509) have resistance to bacterial blight and rice blast fungal disease.

Legal protection
- All the varieties are notified under the Seeds Act, of 1966.
  - The Act prohibits the export and import of seeds of notified kinds or varieties for sowing or planting
- They are also registered under the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act, 2001.
  - This Act allows only Indian farmers to sow, save, re-sow, exchange or share the seeds of any protected/registered varieties.
  - The Act also enumerate breeder’s rights.

Basmati rice export from India
- India is the leading exporter of Basmati Rice in the world.
- Major Export destinations are Saudi Arab, Iran, Iraq, U.A.E and Yemen where consumers want parboiled rice.
  - Parboiled rice has harder grains and is less susceptible to breakage on cooking for long.

Also known as ‘scented Pearl’, Basmati is a long-grain aromatic rice variety grown for many centuries mainly in the Himalayan foothills.
- Currently, it is cultivated in the states of J & K, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttarakhand and western Uttar Pradesh.
They require prolonged sunshine, high humidity and assured water supply.
So far 34 varieties of Basmati rice have been notified under the seeds Act, 1966.

Watch News Today

Need to Login First !