The Hyderabad-based International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) has secured long-term humanitarian rights to deploy CRISPR Cas9 gene-editing technology across its mandate crops, a move that could strengthen food security, climate-resilient agriculture and farmer livelihoods.
The agreement, signed with Corteva and The Broad Institute, gives ICRISAT access to the gene-editing technology through a licensing arrangement that allows not only research but also the development and deployment of improved crop varieties for farmers.
The technology will be used in crops including chickpea, pigeon pea, groundnut, sorghum, pearl millet and other millets, which are central to India's agriculture and nutrition. The development comes as India continues to depend heavily on edible oil imports and periodically faces shortages in pulse production.
Unlike conventional genetic modification, gene editing makes precise changes to a plant's own DNA without introducing foreign genes. Scientists say this enables the development of crop varieties with improved drought and heat tolerance, greater resistance to pests and diseases, higher productivity and better nutritional quality.
ICRISAT Director General Dr Himanshu Pathak described the agreement as a transformational milestone, saying the institute's breeding programmes, combined with Corteva's gene-editing expertise and partnerships with national agricultural research systems, would accelerate crop innovations that strengthen food security, improve livelihoods and build more resilient agricultural systems across Asia and Africa.
The announcement follows India's release of the genome-edited rice varieties Kamala and Pusa DST Rice 1 in May 2025. While Indian scientists demonstrated the potential of genome editing, questions over intellectual property rights and access to commercial gene-editing technologies have remained.
According to ICRISAT, the new agreement provides the legal framework needed to move from scientific research to farmer-ready products.
Corteva Vice President of Biotechnology Dr Wendy Srnic said the collaboration would help develop crops that can better withstand extreme weather, pests and diseases while supporting smallholder farmers across Asia and Africa.
ICRISAT said the licence is expected to strengthen its work in genomics, crop breeding, phenomics and seed systems, enabling faster development and deployment of improved crop varieties.