It is just as well that the environment ministry has put on hold field trials of GM crops, about which there was a lot of apprehension as they use a toxic protein from naturally occurring soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis, to kill insects. While proponents of modern technology say GM crops can help improve yields by reengineering genetic codes and stabilise food prices, many people, including Indian scientists, environmentalists and farmers, oppose such toying with nature.
India has many reasons, including complete dependence on seed imports, to avoid such technology until the facts become clearer with greater international experience. It is a mystery how clearance was given recently for trials with 21 crops, including rice and wheat, despite a Supreme Court-appointed panel of technical experts ruling against such experiments for at least 10 years.
Greens can be content that differences of opinion within the Sangh Parivar helped halt the trials. While Bt cotton is grown in India, the experience has not been wholly beneficial for farmers to abandon received wisdom and leap into the unknown with food crops, simply on the promise of increased outputs.
Some fears about cancer-causing crops may be totally unscientific given that these crops are grown in many countries, but it is worth considering the Indian farmers’ fears that the promised yields are known to come down rapidly, thus necessitating the purchase of more and more seeds from monopoly corporations. The policy of wait and watch seems the wisest course until the world is better informed about this technology.
