To support biodiversity conservation, sustainable use of biological resources and community welfare, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has disbursed Rs 1.19 crore under the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) mechanism to 29 State Biodiversity Boards and one Union Territory Biodiversity Council. The amount comes from ABS contributions made by companies for research and commercial utilisation of agricultural biological resources.
Because the biological resources were sourced through markets or traders, individual benefit claimers could not be easily identified. The NBA therefore followed the distribution mechanism recommended by the Expert Committee and approved by the Authority. The allocations were worked out in proportion to the estimated cultivation areas of the respective biological resources, using official agricultural statistics published by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on its Unified Portal for Agricultural Statistics.
The allocation details for the ten States receiving the most, together with the amount shared among other States and the Union Territory, are given below:
The allocation relates to agricultural biological resources such as maize (Zea mays L.), rice (Oryza sativa L.), pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) and cotton (Gossypium hirsutum).
ABS contributions were received from M/s Corteva Crop India Pvt. Ltd., M/s Pioneer Overseas Corporation, M/s Pioneer Hi-Bred Private Limited, M/s Limagrain India Private Limited (formerly M/s Bisco Biosciences Private Ltd.), M/s Limagrain (Thailand) Co. Ltd., M/s Limagrain Brasil S.A. and M/s Syngenta India Ltd. for the utilisation of maize and sweet corn varieties. M/s Limagrain India Pvt. Ltd. also contributed for five maize hybrids, two rice hybrids and three pearl millet hybrids. For cotton, contributions were received from M/s Corteva Crop India Pvt. Ltd. for research involving 16 varieties and M/s Crystal Crop Protection Limited for the commercial utilisation of 14 hybrids.
The agriculture sector is emerging as a potential contributor to India’s ABS mechanism, showing how the use of agricultural biological resources can produce benefits for conservation and local communities. Contributions of this kind can support the conservation and sustainable use of India’s agricultural biodiversity, including traditional varieties and genetic diversity.
As on date, the NBA has disbursed Rs 86 crore realised from the agriculture sector to various beneficiaries. The funds allocated to the State Biodiversity Boards and the Union Territory Biodiversity Council shall be utilised exclusively for activities specified under Section 32(2) of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002. Such activities cover biodiversity documentation, conservation and sustainable use, strengthening local biodiversity governance, research, capacity building and improving community livelihoods.
So far, the NBA has disbursed more than Rs 203 crore, supporting biodiversity conservation and the livelihoods of local communities. With India preparing for the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 17), scheduled for 19-30 October 2026 in Yerevan, Armenia, these efforts highlight the country's commitment to conserving its biological heritage and to ensuring that the benefits drawn from it contribute to the well-being of local communities.