Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh will be inaugurating the 'National Genome Editing and Training Centre (NGETC)' and 'International Conference on Food and Nutritional Security-2023 (iFANS-2023)' in Mohali on Thursday.
According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, NGETC is a one-roof state-of-the-art facility that will serve as a national platform to cater to the regional needs to adapt different genome editing methods, including CRISPR-Cas mediated genome modification.
In the current climatic scenario, improving crops for better nutrition and tolerance to the changing environmental condition is a significant challenge. Genome editing could be a promising technology that Indian research could adapt to offer the desired tailor-made traits in crops.
National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI) has shown ability and can expand the genome editing tools to vast arrays of crops, including Banana, Rice, Wheat, Tomato, Maize and Millets, said the Ministry statement.
The International Conference on Food and Nutritional Security (iFANS-2023) will be jointly organized by NABI, Centre for Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing (CIAB), National Institute of Plant Biotechnology (NIPB) and the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) at NABI, Mohali.
The Science and Technology Ministry said the conference envisages bringing together international experts and young researchers in the areas of agriculture, food, and nutrition biotechnology, and genome editing.
The theme of the conference is pertinent to inspire young students and researchers considering the fact that food and nutrition security is a global demand. Advanced biotechnology tool such as genome editing using CRISPR-Cas9 has potential to achieve these goals in a sustainable manner.
More than 500 participants from various parts of the country have registered for this conference. In addition, 80 speakers (40 international and 40 national) will be sharing their scientific knowledge during these four days, said the official statement.
( With inputs from ANI )
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