Cancel GEAC meeting on GM mustard on Feb 5: Farmers' unions

Farmer unions, including BKS, today demanded that the Environment Ministry cancel the meeting of the regulatory body GEAC scheduled for February 5 to discuss the much-debated genetically modified (GM) mustard seed.
The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC)had met once last month to hear views of the technology developer Deepak Pental, a scientist at the Delhi University.
The Environment Ministry has received a proposal for commercial cultivation of a GM hybrid variety of the mustard plant developed by the university's Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants (CGMCP).
"Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar is allowing GEAC to hold its meeting to process the GM mustard application on Friday (February 5). It makes us wonder what and wherefrom is the need and pressure emerging from," said a joint statement issued by 13 farmers unions.

They said the meeting has been scheduled despite opposition to the GM mustard by major crop-growing states, including BJP-rules ones, it said.
"They (states) have also expressed concern about the secretive processes adopted by the regulators and for not putting out bio-safety data in the public domain. The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Centre's regulators on a contempt petition," the joint statement added.

They demanded that the secret meeting of the regulator be cancelled immediately by the minister.
Farmers' unions included Bhartiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU), All India Kisan Sabha, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS), Telangana Rythu Sangham, Tamil Nadu Farmers Association and All India Krantikari Kisan Sabha, among others.

They held that the developers of GM mustard hold several patents relating to the product and are free to sell these IPRs to any large corporation.
"There is also the question of native seed varieties being contaminated by GM mustard. Foreign genes related to male sterility and herbicide tolerance will then affect the crop of non-GM growers also," the statement said.
They argued that there are many farmers in North India who take up bee-keeping, along with mustard cultivation, and scientific evidence on GM mustard shows that bee population would get affected too. This would "lead to losses in both mustard and honey production for these farmers".

The unions also complained that while there are many extant farmers' varieties waiting to be registered with the Plant Varieties Protection and Farmers Rights Authority, public and private sector varieties are being prioritised for the purpose.