Save cotton revolution: Reducing GM seeds price spells trouble for farmers

The agriculture ministry’s ill-advised reduction of prices of genetically modified (GM) Bt-cotton seeds and the royalty payable to technology developers — the second time in three years — may have worrisome consequences for the cotton sector. For one, it is likely to reduce the availability of genuine seeds and instead spur the sale of spurious ones. At worst, it may jeopardise the sustainability of the cotton revolution that has made India the world’s largest producer and second-largest exporter of this natural fibre. The price reduction of Rs 60 per seed pack of 450 gm has come about at a time when the seed industry’s margins are under pressure due to ever-rising production costs of high-tech transgenic hybrids containing the pest-killer gene borrowed from the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) bacteria. The National Seed Association of India had, in fact, made a representation to the government for raising the Bt-cotton seed price by at least Rs 150 a pack to ensure the viability of the labour- and cost-intensive hybrid seed business.

 
Though the government’s action is meant to benefit 8 million cotton growers, in reality it may hurt them the most. Seed companies have threatened to stop or curtail the production of Bt-seeds from next season, beginning May-June, opening the window for fake and substandard seeds. The result will be poor crop yields, higher losses due to pests and more expenses on crop protection chemicals, worsening the plight of cotton farmers, many of whom are driven to commit suicide by the high-stakes economy around the commodity. The circulation of phoney Bt-cotton seeds has, in fact, been on the rise ever since price controls were imposed on Bt-seeds in 2016. Consequently, pink bollworm, the most formidable foe of cotton that was overwhelmed by pest-protected Bt-hybrids, has reappeared to ravage crops in several key cotton-growing states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Punjab. The pest menace is exacerbating also because the in-built resistance of older Bt-cotton hybrids to pink bollworm is gradually waning. This is a natural process that affects most crop varieties, necessitating constant replacement of old strains with newer ones. In the case of Bt-cotton, new strains are hard to come by, thanks to the government’s misguided policy on GM seed approval. Due to low returns, US seed giant Monsanto has stopped introducing new generation seeds and technology in India. Some of the Indian companies that have their own seed research facilities may also withdraw.

 
The government will, therefore, be well advised to revisit its seed price control policy. The need is to incentivise the evolution of new and better seeds, preferably non-hybrid seeds, which can be reused to help farmers raise crop output with reduced costs. The public sector research bodies have already evolved some such gene-altered varieties (non-hybrids) which need to be approved and promoted expeditiously. Given proper policy backing and other support, more such varieties can come up soon from the public as well as private sectors. Besides, agronomic means to control this pest should also be popularised. One such way is to advance the sowing and harvesting of a crop to escape pink bollworm, which attacks late in the season. A multi-pronged strategy is imperative to save the cotton revolution.