3 states refuse NOC for conducting GE cotton field trial

Karam Prakash

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New Delhi, June 10

Of the four states asked by the Union Government to conduct field trials of a genetically engineered (GE) variety of hybrid cotton, three have refused to oblige.

The variant carries the Cry2AI gene and is being claimed to help fight pink bollworm. Hyderabad-based seed company Bioseed Research Limited has patented the genetically modified variety.

The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), under the Ministry of Environment, had approved the field trials of a GE variety of hybrid cotton in four states Telangana, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Haryana in January. The committee had already approved four locations Janwada in Telangana, Jalna in Maharashtra, Junagadh in Gujarat, and Hisar in Haryana. However, Telangana, Maharashtra, Gujarat have refused to give a no-objection certificate (NOC) for conducting field trials this season.

Last month, the Telangana Government had decided not to conduct the trial. Similarly, Gujarat has also refused the proposal. In the meantime, the GEAC has asked Telangana and Gujarat to cite the reasons for not issuing the NOC for trials, while Maharashtra has been asked to share its comments along with appropriate reasoning within 30 days.

The committee further suggested that the Department of Biotechnology, Indian Council of Agricultural Research and the Ministry of Agriculture could jointly organise capacity-building activities with regard to GM crops for apprising the state and UT government(s) of the technology involved and regulatory framework in place for the evaluation of these GM crops, thereby enabling informed decision-making by the state and UT government(s). “Why should a statutory regulator be pressurising state governments in this manner? This is a biased lobbying approach that a supposedly neutral regulatory body is taking up,” said Kavitha Kuruganti from the Coalition for a GM-Free India in a letter to the Environment Minister.