Amid rising geopolitical tensions, climate variability, and global supply chain disruptions, the Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) has called for greater national focus on preserving and strengthening India’s agrobiodiversity, describing seed diversity and resilient crop genetics as critical for ensuring long-term food security and farmer resilience.
Ajai Rana, Chairman of FSII and CEO & MD of Savannah Seeds, said biodiversity is no longer merely an environmental concern but has become closely linked to economic resilience and national preparedness. He noted that diverse seed systems serve as a safeguard during climate-related disruptions, geopolitical conflicts, and supply chain shocks.
Rana said India possesses a major strategic advantage through its vast agrobiodiversity, including thousands of indigenous crop varieties, traditional rice landraces, pulses, oilseeds, and region-specific seed systems adapted to diverse climatic conditions. According to FSII, such locally adaptive seed systems play a crucial role in stabilising farm productivity during periods of global uncertainty.
The industry body also highlighted the growing importance of modern breeding technologies, biotechnology, and genome editing in developing climate-resilient crop varieties. Rana said nearly 3,000 climate-resilient crop varieties, including drought-tolerant, flood-tolerant, heat-resilient, and nutrient-efficient varieties, were developed under national breeding programmes between 2014 and 2025.
Dr Paresh Verma, Director General of FSII, said combining traditional biodiversity with modern science will be key to strengthening agricultural resilience in the future. He added that precision breeding and biotechnology are helping develop crop varieties capable of withstanding heat stress, drought, pests, and changing climatic conditions without compromising productivity.
FSII said India currently has more than 30,000 registered seed varieties and a domestic seed market valued at nearly Rs 30,000 crore. With policy reforms, stronger research incentives, and regulatory support, the organisation estimates India could raise its share in global seed exports from around 1 percent currently to 10 percent by 2035, positioning the country as a major global seed hub.