Key Terms & Concepts — UPSC Mains
Bioprospecting
"The systematic search for biological organisms — plants, animals, microbes — in natural environments to discover comme..."
The systematic search for biological organisms — plants, animals, microbes — in natural environments to discover commercially valuable genetic or chemical compounds for medicines, crops, or industrial processes.
Bioprospecting is central to Blue Economy and biodiversity policy debates. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its Nagoya Protocol govern access and benefit-sharing when nations prospect in each other's biodiversity. India is a mega-diverse country (12th in biodiversity; 17 mega-diverse nations) — its genetic resources are commercially valuable. Use in GS-3 (Environment, Biodiversity, Blue Economy, Science & Tech). Also connects to the debate on biopiracy vs. legitimate bioprospecting.
India's Deep Ocean Mission allocates ₹4,077 crore over five years specifically for deep-sea bioprospecting, targeting organisms below 5,000 metres that may yield novel antibiotics, enzymes, and bio-materials.