The fascinating story of boron–boron triple bond

CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 104, NO. 12, 25 JUNE 2013 1601 The new international standards are expected to help genebanks worldwide to conserve crop diversity in a more efficient and cost-effective manner. They provide a basis for establishing the norms and standards essential for the smooth operation of a genebank. They can be used by genebank curators as a source of guidance for developing standard operating procedures. They would also be helpful for developing quality management systems in genebanks. A systematic application of these standards will, however, require strong national, regional and global commitment and continuous financial support for capacity development and upgrading professional skills. After approval of the CGRFA, the Genebank Standards for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture is expected to be published by the FAO and widely disseminated amongst decisionmakers and relevant stakeholders. All genebanks are expected to adopt these standards, as far as possible, to ensure conservation of genetic resources under optimal conditions, for perpetuity. It is further expected that species-specific standards be developed in future for further fine-tuning of this endeavour.