The increased yield was consistently observed under practical field conditions and underscores the potential of precise genome editing approaches to sustainably increase agricultural productivity. The scientific results were published as a preprint on bioRxiv (link to publication).
Kamala was developed in close collaboration with Satendra Mangrauthia and Indian partner institutions. The line has now been officially registered as a new rice variety in India and can, in principle, be approved for cultivation under current Indian government regulations, as it does not contain any transgenic sequences.
The registration of Kamala has been publicly criticized by The Coalition for a GM Free India. In this context, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has published an official statement explaining the scientific and regulatory classification of the variety (link to statement).