The Hindu Business Line : Exporters of basmati get evolved varieties

Ending the prolonged controversy on what constitutes the definition of the basmati rice, the Agriculture Ministry has removed the bar of having one of the two parents from among the traditional basmati varieties, thereby, paving the way for inclusion of evolved basmati varieties too. The revised definition not only enables the development of new basmati varieties but also promotes the trade of basmati rice substantially.

Definition

As a matter of abundant caution, the definition has been expanded by including in the family history (genealogy) a basmati variety (traditional or evolved) notified under the Seed Act 1966, to pass the “basmati quality genes” into the new evolved varieties. It thus seeks to declare that all varieties of basmati rice notified as basmati rice under the Seed Act, 1966 (54 of 1966) and any future variety notified as basmati under the same Act are construed as basmati rice.

Getting notified

Exporters of non-notified varieties such as Pusa 1121 and CSR 30 are overly happy with the definitional change and they told Business Line here that in the current year crop (2007-08), these varieties constituted 70 per cent of production of basmati rice.

In effect this has left merely 30 per cent of notified basmati rice varieties such as Pusa Basmati 1, Super basmati and traditional basmati rice for the purpose of regular exports. But the new definition has inbuilt checks and balances to prevent any spurious varieties from getting notified. Trade policy analysts contend that the trade-related intellectual property rights (TRIPS) agreement under the WTO does not restrict or deprive Indian basmati rice breeding programme in the usage of grandparent or great grandparent. Rather such usage reinforces technically and commercially to safeguard the basmati rice for the purpose of long-term sustainable development.

DAC notification

While there are no changes in the status quo as regards 11 varieties already notified by the Commerce Ministry as basmati under the Export (Quality Control and Inspection) Act, 1963, the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation (DAC) in its office memorandum note has told the Commerce Ministry that the latter’s notification of a particular variety of rice as super basmati has “no sanctity” under the Seeds Act, 1966.

It may be noted that super was a variety evolved in Pakistan and its replication here as super basmati was resented by Islamabad, which was stalling the joint bid by India and Pakistan to register basmati as a GI.

National Basmati Trials

The DAC has said the variety should be either traditional known basmati or evolved through National Basmati Trials (NBT) of All India Coordinated Rice Improvement Project, Hyderabad, ICAR, and released/ notified under the Seed Act 1966 and amendment made therein.

The variety should be suitable to be grown in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India of Geographical Indication (GI) of basmati growing areas, recommended for cultivation, for its denomination as basmati rice.

Quality parameters

The variety should be assessed under NBT for quality parameters with a minimum ageing of three months after milling by the identified laboratory/laboratories, as an integral data component involved in decision-making. It should fulfil the quality parameters of primary and ancillary characters as a pre-requisite as set out and one or more laboratories identified by the DRR, Hyderabad, ICAR, for the purpose should verify these.

Further, it was stated that the Central sub-committee on crop standards, notification and release of varieties would be deciding whether a particular basmati variety is a traditional variety or an evolved variety developed through breeding process. What constitutes the breeding process would be for the sub-committee to decide, it was stated.

Notification of rice varieties as basmati (or otherwise) would be the sole responsibility of the Central Seed Committee/DAC as is provided in the Seeds Act, 1966 so that no other wing of the Government does any arbitrary notification and ends up in altercation with rival exporters.

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