Genetically Modified Crops in India: The Bt Brinjal Controversy

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Excerpts

The Cartagena Protocol (CP) was negotiated under the Convention of Biodiversity (CBD). The CBD was adopted in 1992 at the United Nations Conference for Environment and Development. The main objectives of the CBD are conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of resources, and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the use of genetic resources.....

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In India, a sizeable population is dependent on agriculture, which itself is dependent on the monsoon and the availability of appropriate material inputs, including seeds. The farmers are generally ready to try out any new technology to improve yield and returns as is evident from what happened during the Green Revolution days ............

A transgenic crop, Bt cotton was for the first time introduced in India in 2002. In 2002, three varieties of Bt cotton hybrids promoted by Mahyco-Monsanto (Mech 12 Bt, Mech 162 Bt, Mech 184 Bt) were approved for commercialization in 6 states of India (Refer to Table I for Bt cotton Development by Mahyco-Monsanto in India - A Timeline)........

Brinjal is an important and indigenous vegetable crop in India. The major brinjal producing states are Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, Assam, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka. The production of brinjal in the year 2005-06 was 9,136,300 metric tons (MT) from an area of 553,300 hectares (HA)........

Some analysts are of the opinion that since the cultivation and consumption of brinjal in India is extensive, the commercialization of Bt brinjal will have significant economic implications for the farmers.......

Exhibit I: Recombinant DNA Molecule Technique
Exhibit II: Salient Features of the Cartagena Protocol
Exhibit III: Article 6, 8 and 25 from the Environmental Protection Act, 1986
Exhibit IV: Protocol for Release of Transgenic Crop
Exhibit V: Transgenic Crops under Development and Field Trials in India