CHENNAI: The State government has already taken a policy decision not to allow any GM crops. The commercial release of the GM mustard in Tamil Nadu is out of the question. However, that should not make the official machinery complacent; instead the authorities should tighten the measures to prevent its entry into the State and also promote measures to grow native varieties of mustard, said organic farming activists.
“Permission for any GM crop would pave way for other GM crops in due course. In the overall interest of food safety, the State government should register its opposition to GM mustard and convey it to the Centre in unequivocal terms,” said M Ananthoo, coordinator, Tamil Nadu Safe Food Alliance, a network of 400 organisations. With food being a State subject, Centre’s efforts to introduce GM mustard would infringe upon the rights of the State governments, he stressed.
The claim of yield increases has also failed to convince activists. Ananthoo pointed out that non-GM hybrids were available in the market, besides agronomic innovations like System of Mustard Intensification. Given that there are many alternatives to genetic modification for yield improvements in mustard, the move to approve transgenic mustard in the name of better yields would be disastrous for a crop that is widely used in all cuisines across India, he added.
Activists are also concerned that although the government has a policy disallowing GM crops, there is no mechanism to check individuals bringing them into the State. Ananthoo has filed a writ petition before the Supreme Court seeking to quash the notice of Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) inviting public opinion on this.
According to him, the committee had invited public opinion without publishing on its website the bio-safety dossier relating to GM mustard which runs to over 4,000 pages.“The whole public consultation is a sham and farcical. Public are expected to go all the way to GEAC office in New Delhi, to read the 4,000 plus pages of documents before submitting their feedback,” he added.
Senthamizhan, writer, agrees. “The public hearings are nothing but an eyewash. Food being the very basic requirement of the people, it requires a public hearing akin to that of a public election before introducing a genetically modified crop. These public hearings, however, will not reach all sections of the society. First, there must be an awareness about GM crops and then those who support and oppose it should put forth their arguments in public domain before arriving at a decision.”
According to Senthamizhan, in the absence of such an informed debate, there is no use in even holding such hearings. Senthamizhan urged fellow activists to go to the people with viable alternatives and solutions to garner unfailing support. “A protest without solution will be reactionary,” he pointed out.
Moving toward organic farms
■ The Supreme Court recently stayed the commercial release of GM mustard till October 17, and asked the Centre to take public opinion into account before releasing the seeds
■ Sikkim has declared itself as an organic farming State, and 13 states have released an organic farming policy. Tamil Nadu is yet to formulate such a policy
■ Tamil Nadu grows less mustard than northern states and has to import it. There are a few native breeds and some tribal communities also grow mustard for their own use
■ Anti-GM activists observed Gandhi Jayanti as the ‘National Day of Action Against GM Mustard’ across the country with hundreds in Tamil Nadu taking to the streets in as many as 45 locations