NATIONAL CERTIFICATION SYSTEM FOR TISSUE CULTURE RAISED PLANTS

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NATIONAL CERTIFICATION SYSTEM FOR TISSUE CULTURE
RAISED PLANTS
Dr. Renu Swarup, AdviserDepartment of
Biotechnology, Ministry of S T, Govt. of India
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Plant Tissue Culture

• Plant Tissue Culture an essential component of
  Plant Biotechnology
• A key technology for enhancing the capability for
  production of improved quality planting material
  in large quantities, thereby increasing
  productivity

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• An adjunct to the conventional propagation
  techniques
• The principal advantages of micropropagation over
  the conventional methods of clonal multiplication
  are
• ensures freedom from diseases
• produces true to-type material
• it is faster, and
• it allows round-the-year propagation

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Industry Status

• Plant tissue culture adopted widely for
  production of quality planting material
• Plant tissue culture industry growing since 1989
• Main thrust initially on exports through buyback
• Domestic consumption restricted to few crops
  banana, sugarcane, potato, spices, ornamentals
• Approx. 50 established units, with installed
  capacity of approx. 200 million plants / yr
• Exports 50-60 m / annum, growing _at_20
• Domestic consumption 44m 2002-2003
• - 72m 2003-2004

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Promoting Commercialization Govts Initiatives

• Goal
• To commercialize indigenous RD efforts
• To make plant tissue culture technology a viable
  commercial proposition for industries and small
  entrepreneurs
• To provide high quality planting material to the
  farming community for better returns
• To enhance income generation and employment
  opportunities

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Constraints

• Production costs
• Quality control
• Acceptability of plants / technology at grass
  root level

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Priority Actions

• Scale up of indigenous RD efforts
• Production of quality planting material
• Certification of tissue culture raised plants
• Guidelines for production of quality planting
  material
• Generating awareness

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Quality Control

• Need for a certification programme to ensure
  production of quality planting material
• In advertent micropropagation of virus infected
  plants will result in poor performance and
  undesirable spread of virus
• Failure to use prescribed protocol will result in
  variations in the plant produced

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National certification system for tissue culture
raised plants

• National consultations with industry and other
  stake holders
• Inter-ministerial discussions
• National facility for virus diagnosis and quality
  control set up
• Test procedure / protocols standardized
• 6 laboratories supported 3 virus diagnosis
  3 genetic fidelity
• 3 virus diagnosis laboratories notified by
  Ministry of Agriculture for testing import /
  export material

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Gazette of India Notification dated 10th Mar.,
2006

• In exercise of the powers conferred under
  section 8 of the seeds Act, 1966 (54 of 1966),
  the Central Government hereby authorizes
  Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science
  and Technology, Government of India to act as
  Certification Agency for the purpose for
  certification of the tissue culture-raised
  propagules up to laboratory level and to regulate
  its genetic fidelity as prescribed by them

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National Certification System for Tissue Culture
Plants (NCS TCP)
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Accreditated Test Laboratories

• Testing the samples for both viruses and genetic
• fidelity
• Issue Certificate of Quality under NCS-TCP on
  behalf of DBT

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Who can apply

• Any Laboratory in a public sector / not for
  profit organization / Government funded Institute
  / University having strength in virology and
  molecular biology
• Laboratory should be headed by trained virologist
  with experience in molecular diagnostics and/or
  molecular biologist working on molecular marker
  related technologies
• Laboratory should have at least one trained
  Scientist, in addition to the Head, and one
  Technical Assistant having expertise in the area
  of virology/molecular markers with hands on
  experience in the latest techniques/tools to be
  adopted for the test procedures
• Should possess minimum infrastructure required
  for basic virology and molecular biology
  laboratory
• The Accredited Test Laboratory would be
  provided minimal grant for strengthening of
  Laboratory facility/equipment and recurring cost
  for 3-years

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Certification of TC production facility

• Only certified tissue culture production
  facilities are eligible to send samples for
  certification
• Who can apply
• Any TC production facility with a minimum
  capacity of 1 million
• Public sector, private sector or not for profit
• Criteria notified for certification

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Referral Laboratories

• Referral Center for Virus Diagnosis
• Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI), New
  Delhi
• Referral Center for Genetic Fidelity
• Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics
  (CDFD), Hyderabad
• Develop standard test procedure /protocols
• Prepare training manuals and guidelines
• Carry out confirmatory test or random tests as
  required

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Accreditation Unit

• Accreditation of test laboratory for virus
  diagnosis and genetic fidelity testing of tissue
  culture plants
• Certification of tissue culture production
  facility
• Established by DBT at BCIL, New Delhi

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Process for Accreditation
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Process for Certification of Tissue Culture Plants
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Standards for production of TC Material

• Potato Notified
• Banana
• Sugarcane
• Vanilla
• Black pepper
• Bamboo

To be approved shortly
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In Conclusion

• Plant Tissue is a tool with enormous potential
• Plant Tissue Culture is today poised to be a
  major industry
• Closer interaction required between academia and
  industry
• Quality control to be assured
• Proper marketing strategy to be in place

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Plant Tissue Culture

• A technology with potential strength lies in its
  utilization
• Judiciously
• Optimally
• Sustainably