Science and Technology Minister Dr Jitendra Singh today said that India is witnessing simultaneous advances in plant and human biotechnology as part of BioE3 policy and the biotechnology push under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Minister today inaugurated SpeedSeed Phenotyping and Resource Optimization for Unified Trait Analysis (SPROUT) facility at BRIC-National Institute of Plant Genome Research in New Delhi. Dr. Singh said that modern biotechnology must increasingly be translated into technologies that can respond to real agricultural challenges and provide tangible benefits to farmers.
He said that the scientific advances being made today, particularly in genomics, gene technologies, precision phenotyping and accelerated breeding, will become increasingly relevant in the years ahead. He said that the country’s biotechnology journey is increasingly being driven by the convergence of advanced science, technology and applications that can address challenges relating to agriculture, health, sustainability and national development.
The Minister also called for stronger interaction between scientific institutions and industry partners, farmers and other stakeholders. He said, facilities like SPROUT demonstrate how modern biotechnology can contribute to the development of climate-resilient and productive crops, strengthen India’s agricultural capabilities and support the goal of a more self-reliant agriculture sector.
SPROUT is a season-independent, controlled-environment facility designed for high-throughput phenotyping, precision stress screening and evaluation of germplasm, breeding populations, mutants, transgenic and genome-edited lines. With a major focus on chickpea, the facility will help connect advances in genomics and genome editing with precise trait evaluation and breeding. This will strengthen the ability to move more efficiently from gene discovery to trait validation and ultimately to crop improvement.
