Genetics of Salt Tolerance in Rice

The most important cereal crop in the world is rice, yielding one third of the total carbohydrate source. Three billion people consider rice as their staple food, accounting for 50 - 80 per cent of their daily calorie intake. Globally rice is planted about 160 million ha and 685 million tonnes of produce harvested annually (FAO, 2009). Of this, Asia accounts for 90 per cent of the production and consumption of rice. India has the world's largest area under rice with 44 million ha and is the second largest producer (96 million tonnes) next to China. It contributes 21.50 per cent of global rice production. However, productivity of rice is only 2.10 tonnes/ha (milled rice) which is lower than worlds average productivity of 2.90 tones/ha (FAO, 2009).