CHENNAI: Agro-biodiversity, an aspect that is rapidly eroding in the globalised world, and what human intervention can do is the focus of the International Conference on Agro Biodiversity that kicked off at Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law University here on January 28.
“India, still being a greatly agrarian society, has the urgent need to sensitise ourselves on agro biodiversity. India’s geography allows it to have rich biodiversity, but human intervention and genetic erosion exploits the biosphere,” said P Vanangamudi, Vice Chancellor of the University. H Devaraj, Vice Chairman of UGC attended the conference.
Speaking of important international legal instruments that protect agro-biodoversity like the Nagoya Protocol and the TRIPS agreement, D Gopal, HoD, Department of Environmental Law and Legal Order, said that India too has enacted laws like the Patent Act 1970 and GIA Act 1983, to protect traditional knowledge and prevent bio-piracy. The conference was inaugurated by Governor of Tamil Nadu, K Rosaiah.