India's efforts to enhance biofuel production may get a boost from a work being done at a research laboratory in New Delhi.Researchers at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) have altered the genome of a commercially-exploited fungus in such a way that it would increase the production of enzymes helpful in converting cellulose into simple fermentable sugars. The significance of the work lies in the fact that it would help produce double the amount of biofuel from agricultural waste materials, including rice and wheat straw, whose burning was implicated in the worsening of air quality in most parts of northern India. Available estimates show that India produces around 500 million tonnes of agricultural waste annually.
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