ABSTRACT
The constant interaction between life and the environment is prerequisite for an efficient livelihood. The cultivation of cash crops has become immensely harsh due to various environmental stresses. As rice is the chief and staple crop for nearly half of the world’s population (Verma et al., 2012, 2013, 2015), there occurs a definite need to feed the fastidiously proliferating population. A major portion of agricultural plots are affected by abiotic stresses (AbSs) such as salinity, heat, cold, drought, nutrient, ozone, heavy
metals, ultraviolet light, visible light, chemical toxicity, and oxidative stress. These adverse environmental conditions pose serious threats to agriculture and hence are principal reason for reduction in the crop yield worldwide (Xiong and Ishitani, 2006). At the molecular, cellular, and whole plant levels various responses to these stresses are exhibited by plants (Hasegawa et al., 2000). In the earlier days, scientists researched in the biochemistry of AbS and attempted to explain the technological development in rice. In the recent past, the knowledge on plant AbS responses has advanced at a great pace with complete available information coupled with plant genomes and various genomics, proteomics, and metabolomic tools. Classical breeding techniques, biotechnology, and molecular biology have the potential to improve environmental stress tolerance of crops in which breeding of selected stress tolerant cultivars have already made some progress. The recent development in the understanding of molecular mechanisms in rice responses and tolerance to drought, salt, cold, and heat stresses are reviewed by active researchers in this field.
