Gene Campaign, a leading NGO in India, has recently completed a project in the preservation of plant genetic resources in tribal areas of Ranchi, Hazaribagh and extending to Nalanda and Nalanda districts of Bihar. One of the major goals of this project was germplasm conservation through the setting up of Gene-Seed Banks.
Five Gene-Seed Banks have been set up in Kacchabari, Kulli, Pannakhunti, Icchak and Birsa Agriculture University.
Another three are proposed in Adampur, Kerua in Nalanda and Ganeshpura in Ranchi district. A total of 1,782 samples of traditional varieties of rice, millets, legumes and vegetables have been collected, characterised and processed for storage in the Gene-Seed Banks. These consist of 1,613 varieties of rice, 7 varieties of millets, 90 of legumes and 72 varieties of vegetables.
More and more farmers are showing interest in cultivating traditional rice at least in part of their land. Over 1,350 farmers have taken 600 traditional rice varieties from the Gene-Seed Banks to cultivate in their fields. This is a good indicator for on-farm conservation.
These Gene Banks are administered by special committees-Beej Bank Sanchalan Samitisor Gene/Seed Bank Management Committees set up at the block level. The committees work under the guidance of Gene Campaign. They are to be ultimately responsible for collection, processing and storage of collected samples, for distribution of samples among farmers for seed renewal and for returning for cultivation in farmers’ fields. Gene Campaign teams along with village youth visit villages and conduct meetings on issues like the need for gene-seed banks and importance of conserving traditional varieties. In Uttaranchal, Gene-Seed Bank has been set up in the village Orakhan in Ramgarh block.
rvation through the setting up of Gene-Seed Banks.
Five Gene-Seed Banks have been set up in Kacchabari, Kulli, Pannakhunti, Icchak and Birsa Agriculture University.
Another three are proposed in Adampur, Kerua in Nalanda and Ganeshpura in Ranchi district. A total of 1,782 samples of traditional varieties of rice, millets, legumes and vegetables have been collected, characterised and processed for storage in the Gene-Seed Banks. These consist of 1,613 varieties of rice, 7 varieties of millets, 90 of legumes and 72 varieties of vegetables.
More and more farmers are showing interest in cultivating traditional rice at least in part of their land. Over 1,350 farmers have taken 600 traditional rice varieties from the Gene-Seed Banks to cultivate in their fields. This is a good indicator for on-farm conservation.
These Gene Banks are administered by special committees-Beej Bank Sanchalan Samitisor Gene/Seed Bank Management Committees set up at the block level. The committees work under the guidance of Gene Campaign. They are to be ultimately responsible for collection, processing and storage of collected samples, for distribution of samples among farmers for seed renewal and for returning for cultivation in farmers’ fields. Gene Campaign teams along with village youth visit villages and conduct meetings on issues like the need for gene-seed banks and importance of conserving traditional varieties. In Uttaranchal, Gene-Seed Bank has been set up in the village Orakhan in Ramgarh block.