New Delhi, Jan. 21 -- India is planning a second national gene bank for crops in Keylong, Himachal Pradesh, as insurance against climate change, natural disasters and future food risks. The new facility will back up India's vast plant genetic wealth and complement the country's existing gene bank in New Delhi.

Mint explains why the new gene bank is needed, why Keylong was chosen, and how it could help farmers and scientists.

A crop gene bank is a facility that conserves genetic material-such as seeds, pollen or tissue samples-from diverse plant species to protect them from extinction and preserve valuable traits for future use.

Samples are collected from farmers' fields, wild habitats and breeding programmes, and are evaluated based on...