Recognition and Rewards to farmers and farmer-breeders under the PPV&FR Act, 2001

The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority (PPV&FRA) has been established by the Government of India under the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act (PPV&FR Act), 2001. The Authority, under the provision of section 45 of PPV&FR Act, 2001 Rule 70 (2) (a), has instituted Recognition and Rewards from the ‘Gene Fund’, a national instrument for benefit-sharing. The objective of this provision is to recognize the efforts of farmers and farming communities engaged in the conservation of PGRFA so that such farmers and farming communities are encouraged to continue their activities and their genetic resources can be explored for further use, e.g. for contributions to food security. Recognition and rewards conferred annually under this provision include: (1) ‘Plant Genome Saviour Community Award’; (2) ‘Plant Genome Saviour Farmer Reward’; and (3) ‘Plant Genome Saviour Farmer Recognition’. All three consist of a cash sum paid, a citation and a memento. These awards have raised awareness amongst the farmers and their communities about the importance of conservation and sustainable use of PGRFA. They can also contribute to increasing demand for traditional varieties, resulting in additional opportunities for awardees to generate income or raise additional funds for conservation activities.