Bt Brinjal : HELD IN ABEYANCE

Bt brinjal, india’s first GM* food crop is jointly developed by M/S MAHYCO (Maharastra Hybrid Seeds Company) and M/S Monsanto India. It is a transgenic brinjal created by inserting a gene (Cry 1Ac) from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis into brinjal. It is claimed that this will infuse enough resistance in brinjal plant against lepidopteran insects like the brinjal shoot borer(Leucinodes orbonalis) and fruit borer(Helicoverpa armigera),which cause damage to around 50-70% of the brinjal production.

Bt brinjal is held in abeyance after Indian Govt. decided to put a moratorium, overruling the experts of GEAC**which had given its nod for commercial cultivation in October 2009. While many crop and biotechnology scientist have pitched yield and economic gains from these hybrids

many others have deplored it for its lack of independent bio-safety tests, unexpected adverse impact on human health, environmental issues and socio-economic implications. The ban imposed by government raises may questions like whether government succumbed against aggressive protests against it or does it really have serious implications. It also require serious debates about what should have been done to make it better suited for Indian farmer or what should be done to make it beyond reproach?

After dwelling painstakingly on the current issue it is culled out that integrity of approval process is not beyond question and is wedded to several loop-holes. The Testing Process and the data derived on which basis they have given approval are not independent. GM foods are normally tested for allergic reactions, gene transfer — genes from the GM foods transferring, inside the gut, into benign bacteria present there and creating effects such as resistance to antibiotics — and out crossing, jargon for GM crops getting mixed up with normal crops, contaminating them. Much of the data on which GEAC relied to grant approval was generated by the GM companies themselves.

Pros and cons of Bt brinjal

Proponent’s lobby advocates:-

· Average shoot damage will be reduced from 0.12-2.5% in Non Bt brinjal to

0.04-0.30% in Bt brinjal hybrids.

· Percentage damage of fruits will be reduced from 24-58% in Non Bt to 2.5 to 20% in Bt.

· Total production will significantly increase and pesticides requirement will reduce.

· Small and middle class farmer will get economical benefit.

· Food security in India will improve.

Opponent’s lobby argues:-

· Gene inserted into GM food survive digestion process and are likely to transferred into human body which may have adverse effect on human health.

· It would destroy all 2,500 indigenous varieties of brinjals in India which will have adverse impact on biodiversity.

· This would result in a monopoly for US multinational M/S Monsanto, which has secured exclusive rights to market the seeds in India.

· Soil gets contaminated and quality goes down

Of course it would be a great biotechnological feat if it gets green signal by the government .It will serve the resource-poor farmers and proficiently help control the dreaded pest of brinjal. So it imperative for the government to end the current impasse. For that the central government should arm itself with independent scientific evidence to establish consensus among all scientific communities, farmers, and industries. A legal infrastructure that would allow GM companies to be liable for any damage arising from their genetic manipulation should be in place.

GM* -Genetically modified

GEAC**- Genetic Engineering Approval Committee

SUMIT