{"id":260644,"date":"2023-09-18T20:38:35","date_gmt":"2023-09-18T15:08:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?p=260644"},"modified":"2023-09-18T20:38:35","modified_gmt":"2023-09-18T15:08:35","slug":"how-basmati-in-india-is-reaping-the-rewards-of-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/how-basmati-in-india-is-reaping-the-rewards-of-research\/","title":{"rendered":"How Basmati in India is reaping the rewards of research"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Source:<\/strong> The post is based on the article \u201cHow Basmati in India is reaping the rewards of research<\/strong>\u201d published in Indian Express<\/strong> on 18th September 2023.<\/p>\n

Syllabus:<\/strong> GS3- Agriculture<\/strong>– Marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints & issues of buffer stocks and food security<\/p>\n

News:<\/strong> The article discusses the evolution of basmati rice in India. Scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute developed new varieties of basmati, boosting its quality and export value(from $200-250 million to $4.7-4.8 billion, in the past three decades). These varieties increased yield, resisted diseases, and matured faster. However, basmati farmers face market risks and export policies.<\/p>\n

How did Basmati rice evolve in India?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Traditional Varieties:<\/strong> Until the late 1980s, farmers cultivated traditional basmati types that had tall plants, low yields, and required about 155-160 days to mature.<\/p>\n

Pusa Basmati-1 (PB-1):<\/strong> Released in 1989, PB-1 increased yields to 25-26 quintals per acre and matured in 135-140 days. By the turn of the century, it accounted for roughly 60% of India’s basmati exports which reached 0.6-0.7 mt.<\/p>\n

Pusa Basmati-1121 (PB-1121):<\/strong> Introduced in 2003, its distinctive quality was the long grain that elongated significantly when cooked. Between 2001-02 and 2013-14, basmati rice exports surged from 0.7 mt to 3.7 mt, with PB-1121 contributing over 70%.<\/p>\n

Pusa Basmati-1509 (PB-1509):<\/strong> Unveiled in 2013, it matured in just 115-120 days, allowing farmers to plant and harvest an additional crop within the year.<\/p>\n

Disease Resistance:<\/strong> In recent years, IARI scientists developed varieties with in-built resistance against bacterial blight and rice blast fungal disease, reducing the need for chemical treatments and maintaining the premium value of Indian basmati in global markets.<\/p>\n

How are scientists combatting diseases in Basmati?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Focus on Yield Preservation<\/strong>: IARI scientists are working on maintaining the yield gains of improved basmati varieties by infusing them with disease-resistant genes.<\/p>\n

Combatting Bacterial Leaf Blight:<\/strong> PB-1121 became susceptible to bacterial leaf blight. Scientists are now transferring genes from resistant landrace cultivars and wild paddy relatives to control this.<\/p>\n

Employing Marker-Assisted Selection:<\/strong> Through this method, disease-resistant genes are identified. This technique has been used to pinpoint genes that can combat bacterial blight and rice blast fungal disease.<\/p>\n

Introduction of Resistant Varieties:<\/strong> In 2021, the IARI unveiled Pusa Basmati-1885 and Pusa Basmati-1847. These varieties are designed versions of PB-1121 and PB-1509 with in-built resistance to major diseases.<\/p>\n

Use of Resistant Genes:<\/strong> These new strains incorporate genes (like Xa21, xa13, Pi2, and Pi54 ) from wild rice species and traditional indica landraces, ensuring protection against predominant diseases.<\/p>\n

What challenges do Basmati growers face?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

No Minimum Support Price:<\/strong> Unlike other crops, basmati paddy doesn’t have a fixed minimum support price (MSP).<\/p>\n

Dependency on Exports:<\/strong> Most basmati rice is for export, with only a small portion directed towards the domestic market.<\/p>\n

Fluctuating Market Prices:<\/strong> Basmati grain yields are about 25 quintals per acre, only slightly less than the 30 quintals for regular non-basmati varieties. Yet, basmati farmers sell at a market price of Rs 3,000\/quintal, contrasting with the Rs 2,203 MSP for Grade A non-basmati paddy.<\/p>\n

Government Policies:<\/strong> Basmati growers are heavily impacted by changes in government policies regarding exports. For instance, the recent restriction disallowing basmati shipments priced below $1,200 per tonne poses a new challenge.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Source: The post is based on the article \u201cHow Basmati in India is reaping the rewards of research\u201d published in Indian Express on 18th September 2023. Syllabus: GS3- Agriculture– Marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints & issues of buffer stocks and food security News: The article discusses the evolution of basmati rice… Continue reading How Basmati in India is reaping the rewards of research<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230,9],"tags":[218,216,10500],"class_list":["post-260644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","category-public","tag-agriculture","tag-gs-paper-3","tag-indian-express","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/260644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=260644"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/260644\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=260644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=260644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=260644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}