Role of Biotechnology in Conservation and Utilization of Agricultural Biodiversity

Biological diversity provides the variety of life on the earth and agricultural diversity forms a part of it. Agricultural biodiversity refers to the variability among and between all forms of life relevant to food and agriculture. The Indian subcontinent is recognized as one of the important centres of origin of crop plants. There are around 811 plant species under cultivation in India with more than 900 wild relatives which are distributed over different biogeographic regions of the country. However, rapid genetic erosion of the species and surrounding ecosystem due to various factors is a big threat to this diversity. Biodiversity conservation is a global concern and all the member states of the Convention on Biological Diversity are taking measures to preserve both native and agricultural biodiversity. Biotechnological tools are proving valuable for effective and efficient conservation efforts of agricultural plant genetic resources. Among the various applications available, tissue culture, molecular marker technology, establishment of DNA banks and genotypic database for various crops and accessions have been delineated in this paper.