THIS is the variety of rice without whichbiryani, the royal gastronomical delight,would not feature so prominantly in thehistory pages on Mughal influence inIndia. Aromatic, long-grained, nonstickyare the words that describe it. It isthe Basmati.
India grows 1.6 million tonnesannually. Two-thirds is exported everyyear. India claims its traditional knowledgeof the climate, the soil and the crophas helped develop such superior variety.So does Pakistan. The two countriesare fighting for a geographical indication(GI) status for Basmati rice. Indiahas reduced the minimum export pricebecause Pakistan is exporting at evenlower prices. But for an average Indianhousehold it is still expensive. Bought ata price of Rs 75 per kg it is reserved forspecial occasions.
While a GI registration for Basmatirice is pending, the Indian pridereceived a jolt because the gene responsiblefor the fragrance did not originatefrom the Indian variety of rice.There are 100 volatile compoundsresponsible for fragrance in rice. Themost important is one known as 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline, found in the Basmatiand Jasmine (Thai) variety. Studies haveshown that a BADH2 gene codes for thisaromatic compound. Scientists from theCornell University, New York andInternational Rice Research Institute,Philippines decided to trace the originof this fragrance.
There are two main varieties:Japonica (first domesticatedin SouthernChina) and Indica(domesticated in SouthAsia). Both belong tothe Oryza sativa group.While Japonica is thesticky short-grainedvariety, Indica is thenon sticky long-grainedvariety. The teamsequenced the genefrom 242 different rice varieties. Thegene's dominant variant (badh2.1) thatcodes for the fragrance is found in bothJaponica and Indica varieties. The studypublished in the August edition of theProceeding of the National Academy ofScience concluded that the variant originatedfrom the Japonica variety. Thestudy also explains that the gene enteredthe Indica variety through chance crossbreedingbetween the different varieties.Although the study has traced theorigin of the gene, it does not say anythingon the origin of Basmati rice. "Thestudy just gives a clue to begin with butit does not conclude that the Japonicavariety is the parent Basmati variety,"said K V Prabhu, head of the geneticsdepartment at the Indian AgriculturalResearch Institute, Delhi.
Besides, the Indian variety ofBasmati rice is not the pure Indica variety.U S Singh, the South Asia regionalproject coordinator of InternationalRice Research Institute explained thatBasmati lies somewhere between theIndica and the Japonica variety. "Even ifthe the gene has been traced to Japonicait is unlikely to have any ownershipimplications as this variety does notbelong to any one country specifically,"assured Singh. This is good news forIndia as it fights for the GI status."GI is crystallization of traditionalknowledge and practices that are evocativeof a geographical region. Even if therice line did come from some othercountry 1,000 years ago, Basmati is recognizedworldwide as the fragrant ricegrown in the foothills of theHimalaya," explained Sunita KSreedharan, a patent lawyerfrom Delhi.
This study is also notlikely to bring back theBasmati patent controversy.An American companyRiceTec Inc won a USpatent on Basmati rice linesand grains in 1997. This waschallenged by the Indiangovernment in 2000 and thedispute ended after RiceTecInc gave up its patent title.Susan McCouch, plant geneticist atCornell University and one of theresearchers, quoted the academic significanceof the study: it opens avenues todevelop fragrant rice varieties to suitdifferent cultures