Relevance: GS-3: Indian Economy, e-technology in the aid of farmers.

Key phrases: GM crops, Bt cotton, Bt brinjal, Golden rice, GEAC, MoEF&CC.

Why in News?

• India is still undecided on genetically engineered or genetically modified organism (GM) crops despite the regulatory authority — Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) — giving the environmental clearance for GM brinjal and mustard, the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report has said.

What is GMOs crop?

• Genetically modified crops (GM crops) are plants used in agriculture, the DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering methods. Plant genomes can be engineered by physical methods or by use of Agrobacterium for the delivery of sequences hosted in T-DNA binary vectors.
• Unlike what plant breeders did traditionally in cross breeding by combining genes from same or closely related plant species, GM technology does not restrict trait selection. Genes from any living organism, be it plants, or animals, is used to arrive at the desired traits.

GM crops in India:

• India has approved commercial cultivation of only one GM crop, i.e Bt cotton.India approved the bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) variety of GM cotton in 2002 mainly since many growers began cultivating it illegally at the start of 2000.
• Growers saw Bt cotton, which makes up 95 per cent of the area under cotton currently, as the response to low yield of the traditional varieties.
• India hasn’t got any new GM crops since 2009 after the Supreme court declared a 10-year moratorium on genetically modified crops. Though the moratorium has ended, no new GM crop has been approved.
• No GM food crop has ever been approved for commercial cultivation in the country.
• Genetically modified crops like BT Brinjal, GM-Mustard and Protato (protein-rich potato) are also produced in India. However, the initiative to release BT brinjal to the common public was blocked in 2010.
• GM Mustard has not received permission from the authorities yet and the approval is in the pipelines.

Arguments in favour of GMOs using in agriculture:

FAO put forward various Arguments for the use of GMOs in agriculture, which include:

Potential benefits for agricultural productivity:

• Better resistance to stress: If crops can be made more resistant to pest outbreaks, weather, such as frost, extreme heat or drought, it would reduce the danger of crop failure.
• More nutritious staple foods: By inserting genes into crops such as rice and wheat, we can increase their food value. For example, genes responsible for producing the precursor of vitamin A have been inserted into rice plants, which have higher levels of vitamin A in their grain. This is called Golden Rice.

Potential benefits for the environment:

• More food from less land: Improved productivity from GMOs might mean that farmers in the next century won't have to bring so much marginal land into cultivation.
• GMOs might reduce the environmental impact of food production and industrial processes: Genetically engineered resistance to pests and diseases could greatly reduce the chemicals needed for crop protection.
• Rehabilitation of damaged or less-fertile land: Large areas of cropland in the developing world have become saline by unsustainable irrigation practices. Genetic modification could produce salt-tolerant varieties.
• Bioremediation: Rehabilitation of damaged land may also become possible through organisms bred to restore nutrients and soil structure.
• Longer shelf lives: The genetic modification of fruits and vegetables can make them less likely to spoil in storage or on the way to market.

Why is there stiff opposition to GM crops?

• Genetically engineered foods often present unintended side effects. Genetic engineering is a new field, and long-term results are unclear. Very little testing has been done on GM food.
• Some crops have been engineered to create their own toxins against pests. This may harm non-targets such as farm animals that ingest them. The toxins can also cause allergy and affect digestion in humans.
• Further, GM crops are modified to include antibiotics to kill germs and pests. And when we eat them, these antibiotic markers will persist in our body and will render actual antibiotic medications less effective over a period of time, leading to superbug threats. This means illnesses will become more difficult to cure.
• Besides health and environmental concerns, activists point to social and economic issues. They have voiced serious concern about multinational agribusiness companies taking over farming from the hands of small farmers.

Dependence on GM seed companies could prove to be a financial burden for farmers.

• Farmers are reluctant because they will have limited rights to retain and reuse seeds.
• Their concern also includes finding a market that would accept GM food.
• People in general are wary of GM crops as they are engineered in a lab and do not occur in Nature.

What are the challenges/issues with respect to GM crops?

• The existing policy environment creates significant uncertainty and discourages investment in agricultural biotechnology research and development in India,
• Companies feel that if they begin field trials, on any change in the government in the State where the events are held, the new government can ban or stop it.
• Government ‘indecisive’ in approving GM crops.
• Since research and development (R&D) requires huge expenditure, the companies are not willing to take any risk. This has also led to some of the firms shutting their R&D operations in India.
• Opposition from various farm unions and NGOs, including the RSS affiliate Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS).
• Major opposition to GM cross can be stated as a trust deficit and sense of precaution. Lack of transparency in the regulatory process and conflict of interest are the major reasons.
• Many studies by NGOs have also mentioned that the company destroyed farming in India. It has been accused of even monopolizing seeds, and collection of huge amounts in name of royalty.

Way Forward:

• By resisting genetic engineering technologies, India risks falling behind the rest of the world where scientists are deploying gene editing tools to improve yields, disease resistance and shelf life of crops. We have to take lesson from Bangladesh in field of GMOs crop. Transparent, science-based, and efficient biosafety laws and regulations will enable the Bangladesh government to safely conduct biotechnology R&D. It will also help India to encourage the industry to invest in development in plant varieties that are able to resist pest attacks and diseases,

Source: The Hindu BL

Mains Question:

Q. “More than 10% of the world’s crop land grow Genetically Modified crops or GM crops, but India remains lacking behind. What are the reasons for that? What are the steps needed to boost GM crops cultivation in India?