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Plant Science Today (PST)

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India's compliance with the international IPR regime – A case of plant genetic resources

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.7324
Submitted
20 January 2025
Published
07-07-2025
Versions

Abstract

The Indian subcontinent is one of the eight Primary Vavilonian Centers of crop origin and ranks second after the Chinese centre regarding crop origin. The region has 117 crop species, including rice, millet and legumes. India is also one of the 17 megadiverse countries of the world. Studies show that India has made an excellent contribution to Svalbard Global Seed Vault compared to any individual Gene Bank. Owing to its rich biodiversity, the country must enforce the best governance system for its Plant Genetic Resources (PGRs) for food and agriculture under the International Intellectual Property Regime. Though developed at a relatively slower pace than other IPRs, India's two key legislations - the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001 (PPV & FRA) and the Geographical Indications Act, 1999 (GIA), which offer legal protection to its PGRs. Complementing these legislations, the Biological Diversity Act (2002), amended in 2023), BDA ensures access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from their utilization. The Indian sui-generis legislation for plant variety protection has a unique component: Farmers' Rights. This article briefly reviews India's compliance with the international IPR regime, using PGRs as a case study.

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