NEW DELHI: Environmental activists have written a letter to the Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupendra Yadav stating that the country's regulatory body tried to coerce state governments into allowing trials of a controversial genetically modified (GM) cotton variety.
According to them, this GM technology is contentious as it increases the use of dangerous pesticide glyphosate, which impacts biodiversity.
The complaint comes aftet the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) approved the field trials of a GM variety of hybrid cotton that carries the Cry2AI gene, claimed to help in the fight against pink bollworm disease. The variety is patented by Hyderabad-based seed company Bioseed Research Limited (BRL).
The proposal for approval for field trials was discussed in the 148th meeting of GEAC on January 31, 2023 and got approved in the 149th meeting that took place on May 17.
Even after the regulatory body's permission for trials, the company was in need of a no-objection certificate from the states where it planned the trials. BRL wanted field trials in Haryana, Telangana, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
Except for Haryana, no other state agreed to greenlight the trials. Following this, the GEAC asked the other states why they had said no to it. This is what has drawn criticism from the activists.
"GEAC has been trying to dismantle a system that is part of the regulatory regime in India - that of getting no-objection certificates from states before field trials take place," stated Kavitha Kuruganti from the Coalition for a GM-Free India in the letter.
Cotton is the only crop, whose GM varieties, the GEAC had approved in 2001 for commercial production.
The Bt Cotton variety, said to be resistant to the pink bollworm disease, got the go-ahead with the aim of increasing cotton production in the country. In a joint venture with the US company Monsanto, an Indian company Mahyco started producing approved Bt Cotton variety.
After adopting Bt Cotton over 90% of India's cotton-growing region, it was claimed that cotton production had tripled between 2002-14 and made India a top contributor to the global cotton market. However, many studies show that the claims were exaggerated and false.
Bt Cotton did prove to be pink-bollworm resistant. But at the same time, it made some other non-targeted pests more resistant to pesticides forcing farmers to spend more on these sprays than they did before the adoption of Bt Cotton. It worsened farmers' debt and suicides in cotton-growing areas. Even production increased only in the range of 4-5%.
"We note that, with the vagaries of weather and pest populations, India cotton yields often rise or fall by over 10% per year, even without major technological change," said Dr KR Kranthi, of International Cotton Advisory Committee, USA.
The Supreme Court is already looking into GEAC's controversial approval of field trials of GM Mustard.
In the letter, environmentalists stated that more scientific evidence has come up on cancer-causing Glyphosate pesticides. Because of adverse impact on humans, Bayer-Monsanto has had to pay billions of dollars to affected litigants in the USA.
"Even in India, over 2 lakh citizens have asked the Government of India to ban Glyphosate in the country," says Kuruganti.
Highlights:
1. The regulatory body, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee(GEAC), has approved the field trials of GM variety of hybrid cotton.
2. The cotton variety will have Cry2AI gene, which is claimed to control pink bollworm disease in cotton.
3. Environmentalists state scientific evidence shows that GM crops increase use of cancer-causing Glyphosate pesticide. Scientists say GM crops do not increase yields and create resistance to non-targetted pests which make farmers to invest more on pesticides. It pushes farmers into debt traps and suicides.
4. Environmentalists write letter to the MoEFCC saying the GEAC attempted to exert pressure on states to allow the field trials.
5. The Supreme Court is already looking into GEAC's controversial approval of field trials of GM Mustard.