Prime Minister of India - Dr. Manmohan Singh

PM Inaugurates the Second International Rice Congress-2006

"We live in an age where science and technology have become a principle determinant of what happens to our and wealth of the nations. Thanks to these advances, it is possible as never before in human history, to ensure that chronic poverty does not have to be the inevitable lot of a majority of humankind. Food security for all and eradication of poverty are feasible goals for social action, provided we have the wisdom to combine science and technology and public policy making in the desired direction. I am therefore, delighted to be here at this very important conference, which is dealing with some of the most crucial determinants of food security in the rice economies of the world.

Indeed, for us in India, rice is more than a mere commodity. It is an integral part of our civilization, of our most religious and social ceremonies. It is a symbol of festivity, prosperity and joy. This is true in many other parts of the world as well, for rice is cultivated in more than 100 countries. So, when we seek to promote the cultivation and productivity of rice, we are seeking greater peace, progress and prosperity in the world as a whole.

You are all familiar with the vital role of rice in meeting human energy needs. Owing to the ecological, social and cultural diversity of rice-based production system, we can utilize rice cultivation to address concerns relating to food security, nutrition, poverty, food safety and environmental and natural resource sustainability, across the world. What we need is the further application of science and technology to develop the rice economies. I hope your Congress will address effectively this challenge. While I am on this subject I would like to take this opportunity to pay my tribute to agricultural scientists led by Dr. M.S. Swaminathan and Dr. Khush in the ushering in of the Green Revolution which has transformed Indian agriculture in the last 30-40 years.

I congratulate Dr. Khush for the many awards that he has won in his distinguished career. But I conclude with the prayer that the best is yet to come. Since the early 1960s, global population has increased annually by 1.76%, while rice production has increased annually by 2.35%. This has resulted in an improvement in per capita availability of rice from below 50 kg in the early 1960s, to about 62 kg during 2002-04. This was made possible by the coming together of scientists, agronomists and technologists, farmers, extension workers and those who are in charge of policy formulation and policy implementation in their respective countries. All these categories of persons deserve credit for ushering in a phenomenal change in the rice economies of the world in the last 30 years.

Rice research has yielded high dividends in the past. Modern rice varieties are now grown on about 71% of area under rice in South and Southeast Asia. I have been informed that the annual gains from the adoption of modern varieties in South and Southeast Asian countries now stand in excess of US$ 10 billion. This amounts to nearly 150 times the annual investment made in rice research by the international and national research systems. Despite these remarkable achievements, hunger and malnutrition still continue to afflict millions and millions of people across the world. So we all know the tasks and the challenges that await us.

About 815 million people in developing countries are reported by FAO to be undernourished. Hunger and malnutrition are the underlying cause of more than half of all child deaths, killing nearly six million children each year. This is an avoidable waste of human resources.

Rice offers great potential to address these challenges. This is the first field crop for which the complete genome sequence is now available. This offers a tremendous opportunity for biotechnological applications to improve plant performance and resistance to various biotic stresses. It can also help rice adapt to diverse environments. We hear much about "golden rice" and "iron rich rice" and of their potential to address the deficiency of Vitamin A and micronutrients. I hope and believe that future evolution in rice would change the destiny of millions of people across the globe through improved and affordable supply and quality improvement in this vital foodgrain. I see in rice a promise for better and affordable nutrition for our future generations. The challenge is before all of us.

We in India are concerned that the growth rate of both production and productivity in rice cultivation in India has tapered off in recent years. We need a new boost to rice production and productivity. We need both a Second Green Revolution in rice and, more importantly, an improvement in the economics of rice cultivation and resource use.

Beyond questions of science, a number of profound social, economic and ethical questions are associated with biotechnology. I hope you will address these questions. How the potential of this wonderful and creative science should be directed and controlled for human welfare, progress and prosperity in harmony with nature, is a big question for our times.

There are some anxieties about the risks associated with new biotechnological products, which can at the same time provide food security for the poor. We need therefore, to strike a balance between using the potential of biotechnology to meet the requirements of hungry people, while addressing ethical concerns about interfering with nature.

As the dominant crop in most production systems, rice requires special attention in addressing natural and manmade challenges to the eco-systems of rice. India is characterized by wide swings in weather. Rice has to cope with floods, in one year, and drought during the next. Rice is cultivated in perennially irrigated tracts, as well as in essentially rainfed regions. We need a concerted effort to develop rice varieties for submergence tolerance, drought tolerance, salinity tolerance and for wider adaptation to climatic change.

Rice grown under irrigated conditions is facing the threat of water shortage. This is forcing a paradigm shift towards maximizing output per unit of water instead of per unit of land. Can we come out with technologies that convince farmers to use less water in rice production without compromising on returns? This is yet another challenge for our scientists and technologists.

Indeed, increasing output per unit of water is a larger challenge facing Indian agriculture as a whole. We need scientific, technological, economic and, importantly, institutional responses to meet this challenge. We must shift the focus to increasing productivity per unit of water of both irrigated and rainfed agriculture. This is a vital challenge we face and we must address it. We also need to improve the economics of rice cultivation by finding alternative uses for by-products like rice straw. I am sure we can address these issues if rice research can attract the best minds we have in science research.

Rice is produced by millions of small holders over a wide geographic spread. These small producers hardly have any bargaining power. Harnessing new options therefore, requires a supportive policy environment and favourable market conditions. The importance of promoting trade practices and creating marketing systems that benefit farmers is, therefore, obvious. While historically rice has not been traded as much as other cereals, I believe more recently, rice trade has increased. We need a multilateral trade regime that enables rice farmers to harness the full potential of their resources and capabilities. I conclude by expressing the hope that this gathering of distinguished scientists from so many different countries, social scientists, technologists and policy makers will address these range of issues. Great importance therefore attaches to the noble task to which you are devoting your energies. In the interests of our farmers, our consumers and our people, and indeed for peace and prosperity in the world, I wish your Congress all success".