Government to kick off Bt brinjal discussions on January 13

Environment and Forests minister Jairam Ramesh will start public consultations from January 13 in seven different cities in India before deciding whether to give the final nod to commercialisation of genetically modified (Bt) brinjal.

“I have put a hold on the final approval until the consultations are over by middle of February,” the minister told Business Standard. I have also written to 50 scientists in India and abroad about this”.

The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), the biotechnology regulator, approved commercialisation of Bt brinjal last October . However, it still needs the government’s nod before its release in the market.

Monsanto Holdings P Ltd, a US-based multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation, has promoted GM crops in India through Mahyco-Monsanto Biotech (a 50:50 joint venture between Monsanto and Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company).

Ramesh said the open house sessions, where members of civil society will be encouraged to participate, will be held at Kolkata, Puri, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Nagpur, Chandigarh and Hyderabad.

The minister said he has also written to the chief ministers of West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, states that account for 80 per cent of brinjal yield, for their feedback. West Bengal tops this chart, with 30 per cent of the country’s brinjal yield.

The GEAC’s approval for commercialisation of Bt brinjal led to a major controversy over the long-term safety and environmental impact of genetically modified (GM) foods. The GEAC had said the GM crop had the potential to increase yields to a significant extent.

Protesting the decision, the All India Kisan Sabha had said, “There are many unresolved issues surrounding the environmental release of the transgenic vegetable, as well as genuine concerns expressed over its safety for human consumption.

There is also the added threat of all future seeds and therefore Indian agriculture coming under the control of global multinational corporations.”

The introduction of the genetically modified brinjal is part of an USAID programme called Agri-Biotechnology Support Programme (ABSP) under which the Indian Institute of Vegetable Research, Varanasi; University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore are working with Monsanto and Mahyco.

The European Union has banned GM food crops.