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| INTRODUCTION |
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| Jatropha curcas L. (Euphorbiaceae) has been acclaimed as a source of biodiesel. There is a worldwide interest in cultivation of Jatropha curcas for biodiesel. J. curcas is considered as a land race in India since it occurs in several tropical and subtropical climates for a long period. It is mostly grown as a live fence for protection of agriculture fields and forest species from damage by livestock. Government of India encourages use of substitution of conventional fuel with biofuels; and Jatropha curcas is considered as a viable option for production of biodiesel. |
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| Department of Biotechnology under its Micro Mission on Jatropha curcas has undertaken research programs on this species to meet challenges of energy security and to meet biodiesel requirements of the country through biotechnological interventions. Department of Biotechnology program focuses on collection, selection and screening of available germplasm in the country, develop elite planting material, demonstration of the selected material at various agro climatic regions. The Department has also initiated Jatropha curcas improvement trials for further enhancement of its quality. It has undertaken to develop elite planting material (seeds and clones) for commercial cultivation in the country. The selected accessions are being evaluated under multi-location trials in the country. |
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| Several Indian and multinational companies are involved in cultivation of Jatropha curcas, transesterification to convert vegetable oil to biodiesel and value addition to its by-products. However, lack of quality and certified planting material that has high survival, establishment, productivity and oil percentage is a bottleneck. As an outcome of the DBT program, the country shall have selected quality planting material raised from cultivars evaluated at various locations (different agro climatic regions) in the country. The institutions involved in this program shall be able to get some of these selections registered as plant varieties or cultivars for commercial cultivation of Jatropha curcas.
The DBTJATROPHANET website is being developed by the Biotech Park, Lucknow who is coordinating the National Network for Jatropha curcas. This interactive site has been developed for use by industry, researchers and others interested in cultivation, improvement, use and information on Jatropha curcas as a biodiesel species. The site also provides a forum for Network partners to access and share e-information amongst the Network. There is a worldwide interest in cultivation of Jatropha curcas. The Department of Biotechnology Network partners have developed plant descriptors of Jatropha curcas for facilitation of registration of new varieties by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority. Network partners can access the site and can directly enter required plant descriptor (passport, characteristic, evaluation etc.) information. The Department of Biotechnology can generate reports for its use for planning, application and further development. |
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| The site provides useful scientific information, biotechnology interventions, and reports on success stories apart from news, patents (filed or awarded) and forum for interaction. It provides useful links to the ministries and relevant departments and institutions. DBTJATROPHANET is being officially launched on July 14, 2008 by Shri Kapil Sibal, Honorable Union Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Science, Government of India. The URL of the website is www.dbtjatropha.gov.in |
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