Biotechnology

Biotechnology is the usage of living organism s and systems for the development and manufacture of useful products (Wikipedia.org). The UN convention on Biological Diversity defines the term as “any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use" (UN Convention on Biological Diversity, Art. 2).

The application of Biotechnology has been prevalent among human beings. Biotechnology has been extensively used in the fields of food production and preservation, agriculture, medicine etc. With the ever increasing and rapid development of science, biotechnology too has seen a massive growth in its research and applications and our dependence on it is expected to increase exponentially in the near future. The major applications of biotech comprises mostly the following sectors

• Agronomy – In the field of agriculture, Biotech firms helped developed products like Genetically Modified (GM) crops which have become a major part of modern day agriculture owing to its high output and resistance to pests as compared to non GM crops. A very good example of the success of this sector can be seen in the Green Revolution of India where the country was on the brink of a famine in the year 1961. The total rice yield in India at that time was about two tons per hectare but after the introduction of GM Crops, that number had risen to about six tons per hectare in the 1990s. In the 1970s, rice cost about $550 a ton but in the year 2001, its cost came down to under $200 a ton. India, thus became one of the world's most successful rice producers, and is now a major rice exporter shipping nearly 10.3 million tons in 2014.

• Industrial Biotech- Industrial biotechnology is the application of biotechnology for industrial purposes, including industrial fermentation. Application of biotechnology has resulted in a rapid advanced of many processes especially in breweries, manufacturing of...