Performance of Registered Hybrids on Seed Packets: Operational and Scientific Apprehensions

This post is with reference to the recent notification by PPVFRA, entitled "Public notice for compliance of all registered breeders" stating "Under section 39(2) of PPV&FR Act, 2001, every registered breeder has to disclose to the farmer the expected performance of the registered variety under given conditions. Failure to disclose would amount to contravening the provision of the PPV&FR Act, 2001 and the certificate of registration would liable to be cancelled".

I have few concerns about this notification for which I seek clarification from the Authority and my learned friends here:

1. In PPV FR Act, 2001 and PPV FR Rules, 2003, the term "Performance" is not defined anywhere, also there are no parameters enlisted to define the criteria.
2. Largely all seed companies are following guidelines of Seed Act, 1966 and mentioning truthful label on their seed packets which clearly states Germination and Purity Standards; this can also be considered as a way of expressing performance of the hybrid/ varietal seed under given conditions. If the Authority desires registered breeders to mention "Yield, biotic and abiotic tolerances under given conditions", the matter of preplexity is how scientific and valid the data would be when it comes to all India release and release in major zones, because the data might be generated in specific agro-climatic zones and may not hold good for other regions/ zones? If at all the breeders generate data and mention in the seed packets, will it be acceptable to the authority and which government body will be held responsible to verify the same? Is this not unscientific to mention yield on seed packets; because the traits determining yield are highly dynamic in nature and tend to vary drastically with environment and crop management conditions.
4. The objective of Authority is to invite claims from farmers in case of crop failure of the registered variety, the concern here is do they have sufficient infrastructure, resources, guidelines and know how to access and close the claims in a transparent and justified manner? Or will it be a responsibility of the concerned Agriculture Department, who are already taking care of these issues?
5. Apart from the operational issues, one concern is while evaluating the hybrids/varieties for registration under PPVFR; the criteria of yield is not under consideration whereas the major emphasis is on novelty, distinctness, uniformity and stability, then why after grant this is being imposed on the breeders?

Looking forward for your responses here for more clarity in understanding...

Eligible Crop Species for Registration -Phase 1 to 8

In this post, I will take a note on the “eligible Crop species for registration under the PPV&FR Authority”. It is known procedural fact that application(s) for registration of a certain crop species can be filed, if such crop species has been notified by the Central government by exercising its power under the PPV&FR Act, 2001. Earlier, we had reported (here), (here) and (here) about the genesis of Protection of Plant Varieties and farmers’ Rights (PPV&FR) Act, 2001 and crop species eligible for registration. Today, I will report about the all crop species (88) notified by the Central government in following phased manner as under;

Phase 1(Nov 01, 2006):The Central Government has notified Crops species of Rice, Wheat, Maize, Sorghum, Pearl Millet, Pigeon pea, Green bean, Black bean, French bean, Peas, Lentil and Chick pea for commencing registration for PBR in the first phase. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.  

Phase 2 (Dec 31, 2007): The Central government has notified crop species of Cotton and Jute with their genera eligible for registration of varieties. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

Phase 3 (Aug. 03, 2009): The Central government has notified crops species of Sugarcane, Ginger and Turmeric with their genera eligible for registration. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

Phase 4(April 30, 2010): The Central Government has notified crop species of Black pepper, Small cardamom, Indian mustard, Rape seed, Sunflower, Safflower, Castor, Sesame, Linseed, Groundnut and Soybean with their genera and species eligible for registration of varieties. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

Phase 5 (Aug. 18, 2011): The Central Government has notified crop species of Wheat, Coconut, Periwinkle, Indian pennywort, Rose, Blond Psyllium and Menthol Mint for the purpose of registration of varieties. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

Phase 6 (March 27,2012): The Central Government has notified crop species of Bamboo Leaf Orchid or Boat Orchid, Spray Orchid or Singapore Orchid, Vanda or Blue Orchid for the purpose of registration of varieties. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

Phase 7 (April 16,2014): The Central Government has notified crop species of  Pomegranate, Orchid, Eucalyptus, Casurina, Bitter Gourd, Bottel Gourd, Cucumber, Pumpkin, Barley, Coriander, Fenugreek, Almond, Apple, Pear, Apricot, Cherry, Walnut, Grapes and Indian jujube (Ber) for the purpose of registration of varieties. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

Phase 8 (October 16, 2014); The Central Government has notified crop species of Tea (3 species), Acid Lime, Mandarin, Sweet Orange, Bougainvillea, Banana and Orchid for the purpose of registration of varieties. Please see the gazette notification (here) for more details.

We hope and believe that some more crop species will be notified in future.

Crop species eligible for Registration-8th Phase

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of Section 29 read with Section 14 of the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001 (53 of 2001), the Central Government has issued Gazette Notification S.O. 2664(E) dated October  16, 2014. In accordance with this notification (here), the following genera or species (not being extant varieties and farmers' varieties) are eligible for the purpose of registration under the said Act, namely:

1.  Tea (Camellia sinensis, C. assamica & C. assamica ssp lasiocalyx.)

2. Acid limes (Citrus aurantifolia Swingle).

3. Mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco).

4.  Sweet Orange (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck)

5. Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea Comm. ex Juss.)

6. Banana (Musa Sp.)

7. Orchid (Oncidium Sw.)

Please see the DUS Guidelines for the following crop species as notified above for registration under the said notification. These guidelines shall be applicable as stated.

1.  DUS Guidelines for Tea

2.  DUS Guidelines for Acid lime.  

3.   DUS Guidelines for Mandarin 

4.   DUS Guidelines for Sweet orange 

5.  DUS Guidelines for Bougainvillea 

6.   DUS Guidelines for Banana 

7. DUS Guidelines for Orchid 

List of all the crops species eligible (88 as of now) for the purpose of registration can be seen here. Guidelines for a crop Species should be referred to prepare application(s) for the purpose of registration under the PPV&FR Act accordingly. We hope that some more crop species will be notified in future.

Crop species eligible for Registration-6th Phase

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of Section 29 read with Section 14 of the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001 (53 of 2001), the Central Government has issued Gazette Notification S.O. 1093(E) dated April 16, 2014. In accordance with this notification, the following genera or species (not being extant varieties and farmers' varieties) are eligible for the purpose of registration under the said Act, namely:-

1.    Pomegranate

2.    Orchid- Gallon Lindl.

3.    Orchid- Phalaenopsis Blume

4.    Eucalyptus

5.    Casurina

6.    Bitter Gourd

7.    Bottel Gourd

8.    Cucumber

9.    Pumpkin

10. Barley

11. Coriander

12. Fenugreek

13. Almond

14. Apple

15. Pear

16. Apricot

17. Cherry

18. Walnut

19. Grapes

20. Indian jujube (Ber)

With this notification, 77 Crop species  have been notified for registration. Interested parties can read these DUS guidelines for a specific crop (here) and act accordingly.

DUS Testing under Plant Variety Protection Act of India

Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights (PPV&FR) Registry has changed it long adopted procedure for registration of plant varieties, as per the public notice issued in Plant Variety Journal of India, March 2012(here). I have already posted (here) that Authority has made its mandatory disclosure as per the RTI Act, 2005(here). In the blog post (here) it was also pointed out that some of applicants do not agree with the earlier procedure followed by the Registry, as it was not accordance with various provisions of the PPV&FR Act and Rules. In the mandatory disclosure the norms set by the Authority to discharge its functions provides that “DUS test is to be conducted after advertisement of applications in Plant Variety Journal”. The Authority has already published advertisement for thousands of plant varieties with unconfirmed DUS characteristics and on the basis of which several oppositions are pending before the Registry, leading to unnecessary litigations between seed companies.

Out of these thousands of applications published, the Authority has already registered 327 plant varieties (here) according to the earlier followed norms of publication of characteristics of plant varieties before DUS testing.

Excerpt of the said Public Notice is as under:

“Henceforth, in accordance with Section 19 of PPV & FR Act, 2001; the applicants shall along with the application for registration, deposit seeds of the variety applied for registration in such quantities as specified in the DUS test guidelines of respective crop species for DUS testing. Thereafter, in accordance with Rule 29 (2) of the PPV & FR Rules, 2003, if the application is found to be in order on initial scrutiny then the applicant will be notified to deposit the DUS test fee. On payment of said fee, the DUS test will be conducted. Before acceptance of an application for registration, inquiry will be conducted under Section 20(1) of PPV & FR Act, 2001 by examining the DUS test report along with application and other documents. Thereafter, if the application is found to be in order, it will be accepted under Section 20(1) and advertised under Section 21(1) of PPV & FR Act, 2001”.

At this juncture, I feel it apposite to point out that the registration of plant varieties opened since November 2006 and about 327 plant variety registrations have been granted till date, following the unlawful procedure adopted by the Authority. It took about 6-7 years for the Authority to notice the lacunae in the procedure followed by them, despite various litigations.

The damage has already been done to the genuine parties concerned, who failed to file oppositions due to publication of unconfirmed DUS characteristics in Plant Variety Journal of India. What is the remedy to the damage done to the parties concerned is yet to be addressed by the Hon’ble PPV&FR Authority.

The Authority has to address various other issues related to plant varieties registrations, at the earliest in order to avoid unwarranted litigations caused due to present flaws in functioning of the Authority / Registry. I hope the Authority realizes various procedural flaws and addresses them as well.

Note: For further information & clarifications related to post, please send mail to: onkar.singh9999@gmail.com

Plant Genome Savior Community Award

India has enacted the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act in 2001 for the protection of plant varieties, the rights of farmers and plant breeders and to encourage the development of new plant varieties. Keeping in view the past, present and future contributions of the farming communities in agro-biodiversity conservation, the Act recognizes and rewards such communities. For this purpose, the Authority has recognized and rewarded large number of individual farmers and farming communities who are engaged in agriculture for generations, in conserving agro-biodiversity and their contribution in the development of improved varieties went unnoticed. This reorganization and reward made for unsung heroes who have made important contribution towards advancement of Indian agriculture.

Authority has given 'Plant Genome Savior Community Recognition' certificates to 9 farmer’s communities during the year 2007-08 and 2008-09.

In the year 2007-08 recognition certificates were given to;

(1)Rung Bhotiya Farmers' Community, Pithoragarh, Uttrakhand for low gluten wheat germplasm

(2) Sh B Pradeesh & others, Pallakad, Kerala for Kunju kunju rice land races.

(3)Panchbati Gramya Unayana Samiti, Koraput, Odisha for conservation of rice landraces and also sharing these with scientists for use in their crop improvement programme.

(4)Sh Sundaram Verma, Sikar, Rajasthan for excellent work done for conservation of traditional varieties of pearl millet, chickpea & cumin.

(5)Swathi Samudaya Beej Bank, Tumkur, Karnataka for selection and conservation of white seeded horsegram.

In 2008-09 recognition certificates were given to:

(1)Vrihi Beej Binimoy Kendra, West Bengal for conservation of 550 rice land races.

(2)Farming and Tribal Communities of Jharkhand, Ranchi for conservation of 19 rice landraces having unique resistant gene against Bacterial Leaf Blight.

(3)Sh P Narayanan Unny, Pallakad, Kerala for conservation of Navara rice landraces.

(4)Kuruchiya and Kuruma Tribal Communities, Wayanad, Kerala for very good work done for conservation of rice land races with drought tolerance and medicinal properties.

After a series of meetings with experts, the Authority in consultation with Govt. of India has now finalized the modalities and criteria for “Plant Genome Savior Community Award”. A maximum of five awards per year was constituted and only two awards were given for 2009-10. The award consists of Rs 10 lakhs in cash, a citation and a memento. The selection of awardee (s) is done by a national level committee. Brochure of the Plant Genome Savior community award can be seen (here) and details of award (here).

As decided, the awards were given to two farming communities representing small / marginal farmers and men and women of tribal / rural areas located in agro-biodiversity hotspots of the country. The awards were given to representatives of the Kapotgiri Nandiveerimath Seva foundation and Panchabati Gramya Unayana Samiti on 16th July, 2011. The award were awarded by Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmonhan singh and presented by Shri Sharad Pawar, Hon’ble Union Minister of Agriculture & Food Processing Industries, Government of India. Citations of Plant Genome Savior Community Award 2009-10 can be seen here.

Kopatgiri Nandiveerimath Seva Foundation was awarded in recognition of their contribution towards the conservation and documentation of rare and endangered medicinal plant species in Kopatgiri hills, Gadag, Karnataka. Shri M.P.Shivakumar Mahaswamigalu, Founder President, along with the members of his foundation received the award.

Panchabati Gramya Unayana Samiti was awarded for their outstanding contribution in conservation of traditional land races of rice in Koraput region of Odisha. Shri Surendra Pradhani, Secretary, along with the samiti members received the award.

Authority has invited application for Genome Savior Community Award for the year 2010-11.Detail of advertisement can be seen (here). There shall be maximum of five awards. Application should be filled in prescribed format in language either in English(here) or Hindi(here).Duly filled application should reach the Registrar (Farmer Rights), Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights, S-2, A-block, NASC Complex, DPS Marg, Opposite Todapur Village, New Delhi-110012 on or before 30^th April, 2012. Application received after this date will be automatically treated for next year 2011-2012 awards.

Note: For further information & clarifications related to post, please send mail to:onkar.singh9999@gmail.com

Popularization of New varieties: Standing Committee Decision

Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India has constituted a Standing Committee of Seed Producers under the Chairmanship of Additional Secretary (Seeds) of this Ministry. The Committee is represented by officers of the Ministry, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), national and state level Seed Corporations as well as stakeholders from the private sector.

The mandate of the Committee was to coordinate the efforts of different agencies for effective demand and supply mechanism and availability of seeds of various crops and varieties throughout the country. First and Second Meeting of this committee were held on 23.09.2011 and 28.12.2011 respectively, at New Delhi. During the aforesaid two meetings, major decisions that were arrived at are;

1. New procedure for breeder seed indent and lifting.

2. Seed Rolling Plan.

3. Popularization of new varieties.

4. Discouraging old varieties of more than l0 years by phasing out the subsidy gradually over a period of three years by reducing it to 50%, 25%, 25% in the 1^st Year, 2^nd Year and 3^rd year respectively and completely removing it during the fourth year.

5. Procurement of seed through tender by the State Government -need for formulation of a uniform procedure.

These are major decisions affecting entire seed chain starting from Breeder Seed Indent to Certified/Quality seed production and distribution. Comments were invited to be sent to ministry up to 20.02.2012, for its adoption and implementation during 12^th five year plan.

Some steps are also decided for Popularization of new varieties:

i. Department of Agriculture & Co-operation(DAC) may request the state for taking up extension work with the help of SSC, SAU’s, KVKs, State Seed Farms, and Private Seed Producers by using the funds under the schemes ATMA of GOI.

ii. Data base for performance of new varieties under minikits should be collected by respective seed supplying agencies and KVKs.

iii. Based on the performance of the variety in the demonstration, seed producers (public and private) will take up the seed production.

iv. DAC may request ICAR for suggestions for popularizing new variety/hybrid for increasing its production and phasing out old varieties in future.

The Protection of Plant Varieties & Farmers Rights Act of India is effective since 2006 with a main objective of, establishment of an effective system for protection of plant varieties, the rights of farmers and plant breeders and to encourage the development of new varieties of plant. The decision taken by agriculture ministry is to encourage development of “New varieties” of plants, and is in line with objective of Protection of Plant Varieties & Farmers Rights Act, 2001.

Awareness cum Training Programme on Plant Variety Protection, India

As per the new article here two-day national seminar on “Farmers’ Rights - Current and Emerging Trends”, was organized on 12^th to 13^th March 2012 by the Centre for Law and Agriculture at National University of Advanced Legal Studies (NUALS), Kochi.

The various sessions of seminar were addressed by eminent speakers like Dr. Balakrishna Pisupati, Chairman National Biodiversity Authority, Dr. R C Agrawal Registrar- General Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority, Dr. Suman Sahai Gene Campaign, Mr. Jacob Joseph Honorary Director Centre for Law and Agriculture, NUALS and many more.

In keynote address by Dr R C Agrawal, has urged the legal fraternity and institutions of legal learning to reach out to the farmers and build their capacity in comprehending the scope of the rights provided by legislation.

Dr.Balakrishna Pisupati while addressing session said “There is a need for more clarity on the scope of linkages between the National Biodiversity Authority, Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority in the realm of access and benefit sharing”. He also exhorted the legal fraternity to consider the challenges while carrying out any research which invariably applies even to farmers’ rights. He further urged the fraternity to address the critical issues and challenges faced by implementing authorities and to suggest effective solutions for the same.

It is to inform readers that both the acts i.e. the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act, 2001 and the Biological Diversity (BD) Act, 2002 have provisions for benefit sharing. There are some more provisions in both Acts and Rules thereof which are interlinked, like Section 6(3) & 6(4) of BD Act are interlinked with Rule 37 (3) of PPV&FR Rules.

It is important to appreciate the efforts of PPV&FR Authority, various academic institutions and NGO’s which are playing key role in creating awareness about PPV&FR Act and its provisions. These kinds of awareness activities will surely help to the students, academics, technical persons and ultimately our farmer community.

I take this as an opportunity to inform our readers that the Directorate of Sorghum Research is organizing a “Awareness cum Training Programme on Plant Variety Protection and DUS Testing” on 21^st March 2012 at the DSR Conference Hall, Hyderabad to create awareness on Plant Variety Protection and the importance of DUS Testing under the sponsorship of the PPV&FRA, New Delhi.

The registration fee for the training is Rs.1500/-. The registration fee may be paid in cash during the registration or through DD drawn in favour of “ICAR Unit, DSR” payable at Hyderabad.

Interested persons may please send their nominations on or before 17^th March 2012 to:

Dr M Elangovan, Senior Scientist

Directorate of Sorghum Research (DSR)

Rajendranagar

Hyderabad 500030, Andhra Pradesh

E-mail: elangovan@sorghum.res.in

Mobile: 09848161434