(a) whether the Government have a proposal to produce new variety of rice;
(b) whether any programme has been launched for the purpose, particularly in collaboration of Indo-Swiss;
(c) if so, the details of that programme; and
(d) the steps taken in the matter?
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE (DR. DEBENDRA PRADHAN)
(a) Yes, Sir. Developing new high yielding improved varieties of rice is an ongoing continuous programme and also high priority research area.
(b) A joint Indo-Swiss Collaborative proposal for transferring the beta carotene content from Japonica rice to Indica rices is under consideration of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and Indian Council of Agricultural Research.
(c) & (d) : Department of Biotechnology has already identified Indian Institutions to be involved in this programme. The project would involve back crossing and transfer of gene encoding beta carotene - a precursor of vitamin A. The rice lines finally developed will be tested for their toxicity, allerginicity and nutritional impact as well as other agronomic parameters after requisite clearances before it is made available for general cultivation.