The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has released ₹8.22 crore to three research institutions and 33 State Biodiversity Boards and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils, marking one of the largest single access and benefit-sharing (ABS) disbursements for rice.
The funds were received from M/s Pioneer Overseas Corporation, an international seed company, for using Indian rice (Oryza sativa) varieties to develop and commercialise hybrid seeds.
According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the disbursement reflects India’s commitment to ensuring fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilisation of the country’s biological resources.
Of the total amount, ₹2.47 crore has been allocated to research institutions that conserved and shared the rice varieties used by the company. The ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research, Hyderabad, received the largest share of ₹2.43 crore, while Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Uttarakhand, received ₹3.26 lakh for the specific rice variety it contributed.
The remaining ₹5.75 crore has been distributed among 33 State Biodiversity Boards and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils based on the rice-growing area of each State and Union Territory, as recorded in the Unified Portal for Agricultural Statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
Among the states, Uttar Pradesh received the highest allocation of more than ₹73 lakh, followed by West Bengal (₹64.95 lakh), Telangana (₹50.60 lakh), Odisha (₹48.09 lakh), Chhattisgarh (₹45.91 lakh), Punjab (₹37.15 lakh), Bihar (₹36.93 lakh), Madhya Pradesh (₹36.16 lakh), Assam (₹27.79 lakh) and Andhra Pradesh (₹25.88 lakh). States and Union Territories with smaller rice-growing areas, including Sikkim and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, also received proportionate allocations.
The research institutions will utilise the funds to strengthen germplasm conservation, maintain seed collections and support research and training. The State Biodiversity Boards and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils will use their allocations for approved conservation activities, including protecting native crop diversity, restoring ecosystems, documenting traditional knowledge and supporting local farmers and knowledge holders.
The NBA said it has so far received around ₹83 crore in access and benefit-sharing payments from the agriculture and seed sector alone. Across all sectors, its total ABS disbursements have crossed ₹162 crore.
The authority said the initiative supports Target 13 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which promotes fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilisation of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge. It also contributes to several Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), SDG 15 (Life on Land) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).
NBA is a statutory body established under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. It regulates access to India’s biological resources and associated traditional knowledge and implements the Nagoya Protocol’s principle of fair and equitable benefit-sharing.