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Critical Topics and Their Significance for the UPSC CSE Examination on May 15, 2025

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How did India develop genome edited rice?

For Preliminary Examination:   Current events of national and international Significance

For Mains Examination: GS III - Science & Technology

Context:

world to develop rice varieties using genome editing technology. The new seeds will be available for farmers after the required clearances within six months and large-scale seed production will probably take place during the next three crop seasons.

Read about:

Genome Editing

Genome Mapping

Key takeaways:

• A group of scientists from multiple institutions, under the leadership of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), played a key role in developing two new rice varieties — DRR Dhan 100 (also called Kamala) and Pusa DST Rice 1. Kamala was bred from the widely cultivated, high-yielding green rice variety Samba Mahsuri, while Pusa DST Rice 1 was developed from Maruteru 1010 (MTU1010).
• ICAR stated that rising food demand, climate change, and increased exposure to both biotic (like pests) and abiotic (like water shortages) stresses prompted the creation of these high-yielding, climate-resilient, and nutrient-rich rice strains. Kamala demonstrates improved drought tolerance, early maturity (by about 20 days), better nitrogen use efficiency, and higher yields — averaging 5.37 tonnes per hectare, compared to Samba Mahsuri’s 4.5 tonnes. Early maturity contributes to resource conservation by reducing water and fertilizer needs and lowering methane emissions.
• Pusa DST Rice 1 has shown a 9.66% yield advantage over MTU1010 under inland salinity stress, producing 3,508 kg per hectare versus 3,199 kg. Under alkaline soil conditions, it yielded 14.66% more, and under coastal salinity stress, it demonstrated a 30.4% yield gain.
• The initial peer-reviewed study on Pusa DST Rice 1 was published in 2020 and has been cited over 300 times. The paper on Kamala is currently in the publication process. Both rice varieties have gained recognition from the global scientific community.
• The SDN-1 technique involves the cell repairing a DNA cut on its own, while SDN-2 guides the repair process. SDN-3, however, incorporates foreign genes and falls under genetically modified (GM) methods.
• In contrast, the two rice varieties developed here involved no foreign DNA — the changes occurred through natural mutations using precision genome editing, which several countries do not regulate under GM crop laws.