Demanding a complete ban on genetically modified (GM) crops in India, a Greenpeace delegation, led by executive director Samit Aich, has met the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture and emphasised that GM crops are a threat to the country’s agriculture, food safety and environment.
Rajesh Krishnan, manager, Sustainable Agriculture Campaign, Greenpeace India, said, “We hope the interest of the people of India, especially farmers, will be uppermost on the Committee’s mind while making recommendations to Parliament. We want the Committee to make recommendations that will ensure a sustainable future for our farming and act against such false promises like GM crops.”
The 31-member Parliamentary Committee included the issue of GM food in its agenda in the wake of the biotech seed industry’s attempt, albeit stalled under public pressure, to get approval for the first GM food crop Bt Brinjal.
“It is heartening to see that the Standing Committee on Agriculture has understood the concerns people of this country have regarding GM food and taken a matter so crucial to India with the seriousness it deserves,” added Krishnan.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee invited Greenpeace, a strong proponent of sustainable agriculture, to present its viewpoint on the matter.
Greenpeace urged the Standing Committee to make recommendations to:
Create a regulatory system with bio-safety as a mandate instead of approval of GM crops. This should be set up through a democratic process where all stakeholders’ concerns are taken into consideration.
Enforce moratorium on all open air field trials of GM crops until an independent analysis proving the safety to human beings and environment in the long term has been conducted, and is made available for public scrutiny.
Ban research on genetic modification of medicinal herbs and trees, which threaten traditional Indian medical systems.
Set up a parliamentary committee to review not only the socio-economic, environmental and health impacts of Bt cotton from 2002 up till 2010 (on humans and animals), but also the regulatory system, which has been approving them in a haphazard manner.
Take immediate action against illegal GM foods imported into India and put in place a mechanism at ports, to screen imported food for GM ingredients.
Allocate ample resources in terms of personnel, money and infrastructural support for low external input, non-chemical, non-GM farmer friendly sustainable agriculture.
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