Non-GM mustard yield only a little higher than GM mustard: Coalition

The coalition said that the Union of India presented a new paper with regard to the Centre of Origin of Brassica juncea being outside India

The Coalition for a GM-Free India today claimed that the Government of India has presented data in the Supreme Court showing that the oil yield of non-GM (Genetically Modified) hybrid is on par, or marginally higher than the oil yield of GM HT mustard hybrid DMH-11.

In a press statement issued today, the Coalition said that in the results of the trials conducted by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in six locations in 2022-23 (without the Supreme Court's clearance despite an earlier undertaking in court), the Government presented data showing that the oil yield of non-GM hybrid is on par, or marginally higher than the oil yield of GM HT mustard hybrid DMH-11.

The report, as per the press statement, was presented in the course of the proceedings before the Supreme Court related to GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and their regulation in India, as well as environmental release of GM HT (Herbicide Tolerant).

Justices BV Nagarathna and Sanjay Karol will continue hearing the matter on Tuesday.

The Coalition said that the Union of India presented a new paper regarding the Centre of Origin of Brassica juncea being outside India. However, this ignores the fact that India is a Centre of Diversity of mustard. “The unanimous report of the independent scientists in the Court-appointed Technical Expert Committee has recommended against GM technology deployment in crops for which we are the Centre of Origin as well as crops for which we are the Centre of Diversity,” they said.

Meanwhile, the petitioners argued before the court that Delhi University's GM mustard is herbicide-tolerant and the very fact that the bar gene is present in both parental lines and in the hybrid offspring makes it a HT crop.

They also said that evidence was presented to show that no health expert participated in the appraisal related to the health safety of GM HT mustard. (It is another matter that GM mustard was never tested as a HT crop, and therefore, the health implications that emerge additionally from the herbicide usage have never been tested for).

The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it will hear at length Public Interest Litigations (PILs) challenging the Environment Ministry's decision to approve the commercial cultivation of genetically modified (GM) mustard.

This is the first time that a GM food crop is set to be commercially cultivated.

On October 25, 2022, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) under the Union Environment Ministry approved the environmental release of transgenic mustard hybrid DMH-11 and the parental lines containing barnase, barstar, and bar genes so they can be used for developing new hybrids.

The apex court is hearing separate pleas by activist Aruna Rodrigues and non-governmental organisation Gene Campaign. They are seeking a moratorium on the release of any genetically modified organisms (GMOs) until there is a comprehensive, transparent, and rigorous bio-safety protocol in the public domain, conducted by independent expert bodies.