India: 1st Country to Develop Genome-Edited Rice Varieties (2025)
🔹 Context
- India becomes the first country in the world to develop genome-edited rice varieties.
- Launched by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan (New Delhi, 2025).
- Developed by ICAR institutions.
🔹 Developed Rice Varieties
- DRR Dhan 100 Kamala
- Derived from Samba Mahsuri.
- Matures 15–20 days earlier.
- 25% higher yield.
- Pusa DST Rice 1
- Salinity & alkalinity tolerant.
- 30% higher yield under saline conditions.
🔹 Benefits
- Cultivation in ~5 million hectares of recommended area → 4.5 million tons additional paddy.
- Reduces cost of production + increases yield.
- Helps meet nutritional demands of growing population.
- Contributes to climate-resilient & high-yield agriculture.
- Seen as a step toward Second Green Revolution.
🔹 Wider Impact
- Target states: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, UP, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, MP.
- Supports PM’s vision of Viksit Bharat.
- Boosts farmers’ income, food security, and sustainable agriculture.
Updated - May 5, 2025 9:13 AM | News On Air