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India the epicenter of GM crops
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Tuesday, 21 April, 2015, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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K Vijayaraghavan
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fiogf49gjkf0d - India as a center for the anti GM movement.
- How could Indian ventures invest in GM research?
Indian public researchers have been deploying investments in genetic engineering of crops over the last 15 years.
Interestingly, beyond countries in Americas and Northern Europe, Indian public research has largest number of scientists, well trained in crop improvement, their safety assessment and deployment in farmer fields.
The Indian private sector has demonstrated that these crop improvement efforts can be affordable, scientific and regulatory-compliant in accordance with the best regulatory protocols adopted across the world. This was an unprecedented national effort and has certainly proved to be a threat for even mature agricultural economies. In cotton, India has leapfrogged from a laggard to the forerunner. Soon, we will be largest cotton producer in the world, moving from number 2 position to number 1 position.
India has also shown the way for public-private partnership with some of the discovered genes licensed by Indian research bodies to Indian private sector to develop vegetable and grain crops. The Indian private sector has established that just as drugs and pharmaceuticals, they can generate and absorb affordable technologies for smart crop improvement and bring these traits to the farmers on their own or in partnership with global entities and there by provide affordable seeds not only to India but also to other developing countries.
Indian cottonseeds go far and wide – we see them grown in south Asia and southeast Asian countries (such as Burma) though these countries have not officially approved these products. The fact is that proven technology gets pulled to regions where needy farmers adopt them for their own survival and any denial will only result in their uncontrolled adoption to the detriment of the nation. This is witnessed today in China, where Bt rice is widely adopted but the government is in a denial mode due to uncertain policy framework.
India, the centre for anti-GM movement The efforts of foreign-funded NGOs to create obstacles for Indian public research organisations and the Indian private sector commenced about 14 years ago when Bt cotton was under regulatory validation. During the last eight years, several Indian public sector research organisations, indigenous industry players, and joint ventures with majority Indian holding have developed number of biotechnology derived seeds that can bring enormous advantage to Indian agriculture, more specifically small and marginal farmers and consumers.
The effort is impaired by vigorous efforts of a handful of powerful, heavily-funded non-governmental organisations (NGOs) with their origin based in Western world or seemingly in India with heavy funding originating from Western world. Over the last five years, with the effort to introduce Bt Brinjal by the three leading public research organisations (Indian Council of Agriculture Research, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University and University of Agriculture Sciences [UAS], Dharwad) and the Indian company Mahyco seeds (where Monsanto has only a minority interest) and the efforts of other seed companies in partnership with Indian public research organisations (Bt Brinjal developed by Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI), Bt okra, disease-tolerant potato, drought-tolerant rice and other crops). The following efforts are noteworthy that have attracted millions of dollars of funding from Western sources for select NGOs to engage in destructive effort of the public and private entities:
- Pursuing propaganda against GM crops with international coverage in television channels for a series running for a length of 45 minutes to attract European attention to the issue and secure donation from them – Environment Support Group of Bangalore lead their propaganda with coverage in Al Zaheera, French TV and other channels and the poison on the platter was widely propagated across the world.
- There are others who have engaged nationwide with series of television coverage, rural harnessing of non-farm communities in the guise of farmers (most of this never attracted true farmers and their true associations), bringing such non-farmer communities to urban cities to agitate, provision of expensive costumes to such protesters (as can be seen in all the protests made in the public hearing of the then environment minister) and mobilising school children to engage in agitation against GM crops.
- Filing of public interest litigations in the Supreme Court over the last 12 years with several days of prolonged litigation handled by some of the best paid lawyers against the government departments regulating GM crops. The cost of the public interest litigation with best-known lawyers engaged would amount to several million dollars. Most of them were pursued by two or three organisations or a few individuals over a prolonged period.
- Mobilisation of personnel (over 8,000) to protest against the Bt Brinjal during consultations held by the minister for environment. The durbar held by the minister during the public consultation was a demonstration of the shouting ability of the mobilised personnel. They often marginalised the articulation of most scientists who dared to speak in these durbars. All the education materials placed at any of the site were promptly destroyed by the paid people and the scientists were helplessly watching this.
- Deputing teams from India to countries such as the Philippines that are on the verge of introducing the Bt Brinjal. Debates were initiated and large teams were deputed from India supported by international NGOs present in India and Indian NGOs affiliated to these international NGOs for taking the battle to Philippines. Some of the Indians trespassed the field of UPLB to destroy their crops and these Indians were deported by the Philippines government for trespassing. The legal proceedings are currently ongoing in Philippines courts. Campaign was held by the GEAC (Genetic Engineering Approval Committee) observer duly stressing on his role in GEAC to emphasise to Philippines court the need to prevent introduction of the crops in Philippines. One of the scientists from Indian public research institution flew to Philippines to testify in their courts. All of these efforts were led from India.
- Thousands of campaigns were held including puppet shows at village level to disseminate the false information to village communities and create a sense of fear and prejudice on the GM crops.
- Trespassing was carried out mobilising activists in trials carried out in Tamil Nadu Agriculture University and other locations where the research testing was carried out, obstructing the public research activity.
- Most of the NGOs arguing destruction of biodiversity by these crops are engaged in export of rare Indian plants and conserved seeds to European entities without any concern for biodiversity violation. The fact is that when traits are introduced in farmer preferred crops by public research institutions, their continued adoption by resource-poor farmers is ensured. This is the only way to preserve biodiversity and ensure that these varieties are in vogue. The key role of public institutions is to engage in continuous improvement of genetic material for continued adoption of resource-poor farmers.
The foreign flow of funds to India and the funds mobilised internally by donations (not sure about the source of internal donations) during the last five years is hard to compute, but based on the massive level of campaign taken against Bt Brinjal particularly, the investment by these bodies would be of the order of Rs 200 crore during the recent years. Some of them certainly fear progress as it will curtail their source of funding.
The last five years have turned the Indian clock in agriculture research by more than a decade. The gain is certainly for countries and organisations that wanted India not to progress. India will continue to be blamed for its shoddy regulatory system because only then the progress of science can be withheld in the country. This can only be overcome with smart articulation of facts to public and communication of scientists and administration that can help public secure legitimate information. In countries that have embraced science, this has catalysed science to flow to society.
(The author is chairman, Sathguru, and regional coordinator, IP CALS, Cornell University)
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