Q.In 1997, an American company got patent rights on Basmati rice through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Variety of Basmati had actually been derived from Indian farmer's varieties. If so, what is Biopiracy?

The 1997 Basmati patent used a cross of Indian Basmati with a semi-dwarf rice; the correct option is (c).

Basmati rice is famous for its unique aroma and flavour, and about 27 documented varieties are grown in India. In 1997 an American company, RiceTec Inc., was granted a patent for a 'new' variety of Basmati that had actually been developed by crossing (hybridising) Indian Basmati rice with a semi-dwarf variety of rice. Sinc …

The Indian crop variety at the centre of the well-known 1997 US patent controversy is Basmati rice, patented by the American company RiceTec Inc.

Biopiracy refers to the use of bio-resources and traditional knowledge of a country by individuals/organisations of other countries, without official sanction or compensation to the resource-owning country/people. A classic example discussed in the context of India's biodiversity and IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) issues is the Basmati rice case:

• Basmati is a distinctive, aromatic long-grain rice variety that has traditionally been grown in specific regions of India (and Pakistan) for centuries.
• In 1997, the American company RiceTec Inc. obtained a patent from the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on Basmati rice grain and its cultivation methods, effectively allowing it to market rice grown in the US as 'Basmati'. …

India has 27 documented varieties of Basmati rice, a fact highlighted during the Basmati biopiracy/patent controversy.

In the section on biopiracy and patents, NCERT notes that India has a rich diversity of Basmati rice, with 27 documented varieties grown in the country. This diversity became central to the dispute when a US company was granted a patent relate …

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), India, led by Dr. R.A. Mashelkar, successfully challenged the turmeric patent granted to the University of Mississippi Medical Centre in 1995, demonstrating prior art from traditional Indian knowledge.

Biopiracy is when biological resources or traditional knowledge belonging to one country/community are used and commercially exploited by outsiders without permission or fair compensation — as with the 1997 US patent on a Basmati rice variety that had actually been bred by Indian farmers over generations.

Many countries, especially biodiversity-rich ones like India, hold vast bio-resources and centuries of traditional knowledge about their use (e.g. medicinal plants, crop varieties developed by farmers). Biopiracy occurs when other nations, companies, or individuals access and use such genetic/biological material or traditional knowledge — often patenting products derived from it — without obtaining proper authorisation from, and without sharing benefits/compensation with, the country or community that is the original source.

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