EUREKA SCIENCE TALK 2023-2024

GROUP-A

Are We Losing
Our Indigenous
Variety?
 Contents:
 Introduction
 Definition of Indigenous Variety
 Threats to Indigenous Varieties
 Impact of losing Indigenous Variety
 Case Studies
 Action taken for preservation of Indigenous Varieties
 Benefits of Preserving Indigenous Variety
 Role of Technology and Innovation
 Conclusion
 Introduction

Indigenous food plants are

very nutritious, high
resistance to diseases, free
from pests , genetically
diverse , sustainable and can
survive in different climatic
conditions.
 What are Indigenous varieties?
Indigenous varieties of plants are native
plants of a geographical area.

This includes plants that have developed

naturally or existed for many years in an area.

Examples:
 Ber- Zizyphus mauritiana
 Baheda- Terminalia bellerica
 Jamun- Syzygium cumini
 Threats to Indigenous Varieties loss:

 Habitat loss – conversion of habitats to human use crop lands, urban

areas and infrastructure development.
 Urbanization- reduces richness of plant species and pollinators
availability.
 Globalization- exploitation of natural areas, increasing green house
gases emission, deforestation etc.
 Climatic Change- causes species redistribution.
 Another factor is Invasive Plants
Plants that do not occur naturally
in a region but proliferate in the
area they have been introduced
into and cause several negative
impacts called invasive plants.
 Impact of losing Indigenous Varieties

 Ecosystem services : Biodiversity is not just the wealth of nature but also
the health of nature.
 Loss of biodiversity undermined the ability of ecosystem to function
effectively and efficiently.
 Traditional knowledge- includes selection of crops according to climatic
conditions, knowledge of plant breeding, wild crop relatives and resources
management practices.
Impact of the Green Revolution : Case Study
 Preservation Efforts

 Conservation Methods : storing

seed without damaging their
genetic properties.
 Community Based Initiatives :
The objective is to actively involve
and give some duties to member of
local communities, creating
national parks and wildlife refuges.
 Action taken for the preservation of Indigenous
Varieties

Government policies aimed at preserving Indigenous

diversity: The National Biodiversity Authority
(NBA)
 Biological Diversity Act,2002:
Its aim is to conserve biodiversity . The State Biodiversity Boards (SBBs)
3- tier structure:
The Biodiversity Management
Committees (BMCs)
 Role of Technology and Innovation

Biotechnology: New methods

for collecting bank storing genes
(as seeds and tissue culture),
Environmental DNA sequencing,
tissue culture.
Cryopreservation – storing plant
tissues in liquid nitrogen, drying or
freezing.
 Conclusion

 The above measures may be initiated to revive the indigenous crops and
it is imperative that food security should ensure nutrition security of the
nation.
 Proper planning should be done for the conservation of traditional
varieties and nutrition security plans for the nation owing to their
nutritional benefits.
 Indigenous and local traditional knowledge of place-based biodiversity
is perhaps the oldest scientific tradition on earth.