A Long Rough Ride For Genetically Changed Brinjal In India
The fruit and shoot borer (Leucinodes orbonalis) of brinjal causes crop losses of fifty to 70 percent
. Farmers are susceptible to an indiscriminate use of chemical pesticides around 25 to eighty sprays and this involves heavy expenditure and leads to blemished fruits. Excessive chemical use additionally results in a build of pesticide residues within the produce, destruction of helpful insects, pest resurgence, exposure of farm employees to pesticides and environmental pollution. Cry 1 Ac gene from Bacillus thuringiensis inserted into brinjal varieties (Bt brinjal), like genetically changed cotton, provides an inbuilt pest management mechanism to save lots of the crop from damage, reduce cultivation prices and prevent the incidental health and environmental hazards.
Mahyco have developed Bt Brinjal hybrids, and also have entered into a partnership with public establishments to develop local varieties with the Bt gene.
Mahyco approached the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) for permission to conduct giant-scale open field trials. No sooner, the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, Hyderabad and Greenpeace India trashed the concept of Bt brinjal, brought out position papers and represented to the GEAC against Mahyco's request. Though there have been additionally representations to the GEAC in favour of Bt brinjal, the GEAC was fair to the anti-biotech lobby, and constituted a committee to seem into this contentious issue. Not satisfied with the composition of GEAC's Committee, the anti-biotech lobby has constituted its own 'independent committee of experts', a type of a parallel 'GEAC'. Although apparently this committee is meant to dam genetically changed brinjal, nothing prevents it from gaining recent lease of life to pontify on different genetically engineered crops.
A variety of questions raised by the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture and Greenpeace concerning genetically changed brinjal were mentioned on this website earlier.
Bt brinjal was subjected to a selection of tests and analyses and the main points are on the market on the website of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. None of those studies have indicated any negative prospects that warrant banning Bt brinjal from business cultivation.
Throughout the event of Bt brinjal by Mahyco since the year 2000, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR, Government of India) and also the Review Committee on Genetic Modification (RCGM, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India) were monitoring multi-location field trials. The Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, an ICAR establishment, that includes a considerable expertise with Bt brinjal, is additionally associated. A variety of non-public and public sector institutions/organizations are concerned within the mandatory and supplementary tests and analyses, as below:
a) Acute oral toxicity in rats, mucous membrane irritation tests in female rabbits, and first skin irritation tests in rabbits: Intox, Pune.
b) Effects on non-target and useful insects: All India Co-ordinate Research Project (Vegetable Crops), Varanasi.
c) Assessment of allergenicity: Rallis India Ltd., Bangalore.
d) Dietary feed responses of the common carp and growth performances: Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai.
e) Effects on broiler chickens: Central Avian Analysis Institute, Izatnagar.
f) Subchronic feeding tests on rabbits and goats: Advinus Therapeutic, Bangalore.
g) Feeding experiments on cows: GB Pant University of Agricultural Sciences, Pantnagar.
h) Molecular finger printing and chemical studies: Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad.
This belies the charge that open field trials of Bt brinjal are being conducted by the businesses and without independent verification of the protection claims created by the merchandise developers. If one believes the anti-tech lobby, of these private and non-private sector investigating agencies are in collusion with the product developers.
Efficacy studies showed that Bt brinjal varieties effectively controlled the brinjal stem and fruit borer and also the Yankee bollworm, with an insect mortality of ninety eight percent.
Various different parameters comparing Bt and non-Bt kinds of brinjal, like pollen flow, seed germination and weediness, aggressiveness, accumulation of Bt proteins within the soil, soil micro-biota, Substantial Equivalence, protein expression, baseline susceptibility, the extent of refugium needed and its edges and socio-economic and risk assessment, etc., were examined, none of which indicates that Bt brinjal is undesirable.
The Bt brinjal varieties were found to be Substantially Similar to their non-Bt isogenics in such factors as chemical constituents, moisture, proteins, oil, ash, carbohydrates, calories per fruit, nitrogen, ash and crude fiber contents in leaf, stem and root tissues, cooking qualities and protein estimation in cooked fruits.
None of this goes well with the protesters.
While considering a Public Interest Litigation against all genetically built (GE) products, the Supreme Court of India (SCI) directed the GEAC recently, to not accord approval for fresh field trials of GE crops and this has place Mahyco's application for large-scale open field trials of Bt brinjal on hold. Though the ruling of the SCI, however, does not bar the GEAC's brinjal Committee from functioning, Bt brinjal has still a long rough road to travel to commercialization.
by: Writers Room
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