International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics
Abstract
Genebanks conserve a large number of ex situ collections that form the backbone of crop
improvement programs. The technical manual of procedures and operations of the genebank
is an essential document that provides the practices and procedures for various genebank
operations. In the first such attempt at ICRISAT, a “Manual of Genebank Operations and
Procedures” was published in 2000. The manual was edited by N Kameswara Rao and
PJ Bramel. Since then, significant progress has been made globally, and at ICRISAT
particularly in research on enhancing use of genetic resources in crop improvement.
The concept of mini core collection, postulated by ICRISAT scientists, is now part of the
International Public Goods and serves as a gateway for increasing germplasm use. The
areas of assessment of diversity using both phenotypic and molecular characterization and
identification of trait-specific germplasm for use by crop improvement programs are now a
major focus of research at ICRISAT. The changes occurring at the global level, particularly
since the implementation of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food
and Agriculture, which came into force in June 2004, and meant for enhancing the sharing
of germplasm and related information, has added a new dimension to the paradigm. All
these, and the recommendations by the Internal Audit of ICRISAT, prompted us to revise
the genebank manual and present it in its current form. We do hope that this publication
will be helpful to the people dealing with the genetic resources of our five mandate crops
and six small millets and to numerous other people who work on other crops. We sincerely
acknowledge the contributions of the editors of the earlier version of the manual, and other
genetic resources’ staff, past and present