Posted
20th June 2001
India Alert A Conspiracy Theory?
If
A regulatory coup is about to hit India, opening the floodgates
to GMOs.
The relevant
Indian bureaucrats and scientists are being put under intense
pressure to achieve the *IMMEDIATE* commercialisation of Mahyco-Monsanto's
Bt Cotton this month. Even India's Minister of Agriculture,
Nitish Kumar, appears to be in the dark. Kumar had said recently
that all aspects of the issue (see below) would be carefully
examined prior to any question of GM cotton cultivation. Now
it looks like many socio-economic and environmental safety considerations
will simply be pushed to one side in the rush to commercialisation.
Quite
apart from all the obvious environmental and other risks, crops
designed to increase mechanisation and reduce labour on big
farms spell disater for the poor. They will increase unemployment
amongst landless labourers, put smallholders out of business
and increase the gap between rich and poor. Remember: the 'free'
market offers NO choice to those in India who will suffer if
the largest farms introduce these crops.
The
intended timetable for the regulatory coup:
*The Ministry
of Environment and Forests has brought forward the crucial meeting
of GEAC (Genetic Engineering Advisory Committee) to June 19
so that the sowings can take place in south India by the end
of the month.
*A day
earlier, on June 18, the Health Ministry has called another
meeting to discuss the biosafety aspects.
*Monsanto-Mahyco
is ready with the seed and the list of farmers who will undertake
the sowings. If they get the clearance on Tuesday, they are
in a position to start sowing the next day.
There
is tremendous pressure on the bureaucrats/scientists to approve
the transgenic cotton for commercialisation. Some scientists
have said that this kind of pressure has NEVER been felt before,
even on the issue of IPRs. Everything is being worked around
the clock to see that the legal apparatus is in place for the
approval. This will be the first commercial transgenic release
in India and obviously will open the floodgates for similar
releases. India's farmer, environmental and consumer groups
are waking up to what is going on and are calling for this fraud
to be stopped.
In support
of Indian farming, environment and food groups, as much pressure
as possible must be exerted immediately on the Indian government
to properly investigate the aspects of environmental safety
identified by the India Council of Agriculture Research which
is linked to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Here are
the important concerns raised by the India Council of Agriculture
Research (ICAR). These must be investigated prior to commercialisation.
In a presentation
to the GEAC (Genetic Engineering Approval Committee) last year,
the India Council of Agriculture Research suggested further
detailed studies were required, to include:
* nutritional
studies on buffaloes and cows to determine whether transgenic
cotton and transgenic cottonseed oil has any effect on animal
health, milk production and quality of milk that in turn affects
human health;
* studies
on the development of resistance of other plant pests;
* toxicity
studies on other animal species like poultry and fish under
Indian conditions; * studies on the stability of Cry 1Ac gene;
* studies
on gene flow and pollen dispersal and an assessment of the impact
of such a migration on non-transgenic cotton;
* a report
from Indian laboratories like the South campus of Delhi University
or the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) Hyderabad
that Bt seeds do not contain the controversial terminator gene
that would produce sterile seeds in order to ensure that the
introduction of the new technology would not affect Indian farming
practices.
* a study
to generate socio-economic data like the cost of transgenic
cottonseed, projected demand, and the area to be covered under
transgenic cotton cultivation.
Online
email to Office of the Prime Minister (Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee
)
*Call
for a postponement of this decision until proper evaluation,
as proposed by ICAR, and debate has taken place
*Support
the ICAR's requirements for proper research prior to commercialisation
*Point
out that these crops will not benefit small farmers and landless
workers but only destroy their jobs and increase the gap between
rich and poor
*Their
approval should not be rushed through without time to consult
farmers or properly assess the potentially disastrous environmental,
socio-economic and health impact for India..
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