A fresh beginning

New GM cotton can reverse the yield decline

The approval by the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) for bio-safety field trials of the new genetically modified (GM) pest-resistant cotton is deemed significant in several respects. For one, coming shortly after the clearance of GM mustard, this move can be viewed as an affirmation of a welcome shift in the government’s policy concerning GM crops, shrugging off opposition from the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, an affiliate of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s ideologue, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. It can, therefore, be expected that more gene-tweaked crops, which are in different stages of development, may also get through, paving the way for gainful utilisation of cutting-edge biotechnology for raising farm output and farmers’ income.
 

Besides, this has come at a time when it is desperately needed to sustain the cotton revolution, which has begun to dwindle for want of fresh Bt-cotton strains to replace the old ones that have become outmoded. The country’s cotton production is tending to stagnate over the past several years at 34-35 million bales (of 170 kg each). Average crop productivity, too, has plummeted from 558 kg a hectare in 2007 to around 457 kg in 2021. A sizeable part of the cotton requirement of the domestic textile sector is now met through imports, which have gradually been mounting, witnessing a rise of 200 per cent in value terms in the past 10 months of this fiscal year. The tight availability and sharp spike in the prices of cotton have badly hit all segments of the employment-intensive textile sector, including ginners, yarn producers, textile mills, garment makers, and exporters. Though the government waived import duty on cotton in April last year in a bid to augment domestic supplies, it did not help much to improve the price competitiveness of Indian textile and garment units vis-a-vis their counterparts in countries such as Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

The GM cotton approved by the GEAC is reported to have a set of genes derived from the soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), which produces a kind of protein in the plant that proves lethal for pink bollworm. This is one of the most destructive pests which feed on the reproductive parts of the plant, depressing the overall yield and marring the lint quality of the produce. If this GM cotton finally gets the nod for regular cultivation after vigorous testing — which now seems likely — it can prove a boon for cotton growers who are looking for innately pest-tolerant varieties to cut down the cost of repeated spraying of pesticides.

That said, the fact is that the farmers are also partly responsible for the Bt-cotton varieties losing their inherent capability to withstand pests. They generally do not take the recommended precaution of planting a strip of non-GM plants on the periphery of the Bt-cotton fields. This belt acts as a refuge for pests and minimises the chances of their acquiring immunity against the Bt toxin by feeding on the main crop. The farmers should, therefore, be advised to strictly follow this norm in all GM crops. Otherwise, the new GM cotton strains, too, would have limited life spans and would need to be replaced far more quickly than is normally necessary.