In the present study, genetic diversity indices and forensic parameters of Rajput population of Himachal Pradesh, India, were obtained at 20 autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) loci included in the PowerPlex® 21 System (Promega, USA). With 227 alleles and 11.35 ± 0.89 alleles per locus, none of the locus deviated from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE). The most polymorphic and discriminative locus was Penta E. Phylogenetic tree showed high genetic affinity of Rajput population of Himachal Pradesh with Rajputs of Madhya Pradesh and Yadav of Bihar. Overall, the tested 20 autosomal STRs were polymorphic in Rajput population and found suitable in forensic casework and population genetic studies.
Keywords: DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill, 2019; Himachal Pradesh; Population genetic analysis; PowerPlex® 21 System (Promega, USA); Rajput population; STRs.