How does the conservation of wild rice genepools contribute to climate-resilient crop breeding? Illustrate with a recent example.

Q. How does the conservation of wild rice genepools contribute to climate-resilient crop breeding? Illustrate with a recent example. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

Oryza rufipogon, the wild progenitor of cultivated rice (O. sativa), retains genetic traits that domestication and monoculture breeding have narrowed away [1]. Conserving such wild genepools is therefore not merely an ecological concern but the raw material base for breeding rice varieties that can withstand climate stress.

How wild genepools enable climate-resilient breeding - Reservoir of stress-tolerance genes: wild rice carries resistance to pests and diseases and tolerance to flooding and saline conditions — precisely the traits needed as floods and salinity intrusion intensify [1]. - Widening a narrow genetic base: cultivated rice depends on a few high-yielding lines; wild relatives restore the variability that breeding programmes need to respond to new stresses. - In-situ conservation allows continued evolution: unlike gene banks, conserving populations in their natural habitat lets them keep adapting to local climatic and pest pressures, yielding dynamically relevant germplasm. - Characterisation feeds breeding pipelines: systematic exploration and characterisation by ICAR-NBPGR converts wild populations into documented, usable donors for varietal development [2].

Recent example: Borjuli, Assam (2026) - The Borjuli wetland in Sonitpur district, Assam — a natural habitat of O. rufipogon — has been notified as a Biodiversity Heritage Site, giving legal protection to a genetically significant landscape [1][3]. - It emerged from the project "In-situ Conservation and Management of Wild Rice in Sonitpur District of Assam", funded by the National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA) under the Ministry of Agriculture and implemented since 2022 by ICAR-NBPGR with the Assam State Biodiversity Board [1][2]. - It illustrates a workable convergence model: central funder, central research institute and State biodiversity body acting together.

Conserving wild genepools thus links biodiversity protection directly to food security, since tomorrow's flood- and salt-tolerant varieties will be bred from today's protected habitats. Extending the Borjuli template to other crop wild relatives, backed by sustained characterisation and farmer participation, would strengthen India's climate-resilient agriculture and advance its commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity and SDG-2.

(~315 words)

Sources: 1. Assam's Borjuli wetland notified as Biodiversity Heritage Site for wild rice conservation — DD News (2026) — O. rufipogon traits (pest/disease resistance, flood and salinity tolerance); Borjuli notification; NRAA funding, ICAR-NBPGR implementation since 2022 with Assam State Biodiversity Board 2. National Rainfed Area Authority — PIB, Government of India — NRAA's constitution under the Ministry of Agriculture and its mandate for holistic rainfed-area development 3. Biodiversity Heritage Sites — Assam State Biodiversity Board — legal designation of Biodiversity Heritage Sites in Assam