Karnataka - Mysore   

Oppose introduction of Bt brinjal, people told

Mysore: Farmers following organic farming method have warned the Government that introduction of Bt brinjal into the market would further aggravate food insecurity and push the farmers into debt trap.

Vivek Cariappa, member of the High-Power Committee on Organic Farming, said people should take a stance against the introduction of Bt brinjal. People should register their protest against introduction of genetically engineered (GE) crops before March 31, 2010.

The Government has decided to take a final call on the issue after holding a series of consultative meetings and discussions with public, scientists, activists and consumers, he added.

Drawing lessons from the introduction of Bt cotton, Mr. Cariappa pointed out that the Government had forced small farmers to use Bt cotton which was made amply available while the more cheaper and reliable DCH-32 variety of cotton seeds disappeared from the market.

Mr. Cariappa said that the farmers in Mysore and Chamarajanagar districts were banned from using DCH-32 cotton. So, they were forced to invest more money on genetically engineered seed variety. But later it was found that crop failure was significantly high in areas where Bt cotton was cultivated, said Mr. Cariappa. He pointed out that the cost of cotton cultivation went up and although the DCH-32 variety commanded a higher price, the farmers were forced to grow the Bt variety.

Mr. Cariappa said that the genetically modified (GM) technology has been designed for industrial farming and will take away the farmers’ right to store seeds from the previous crop. Mr. Cariappa warned that the Government’s move on Bt brinjal could affect the small and marginal farmers and have a negative impact on the food security of the country.

He pointed out that brinjal belonged to Solenaceae family also called Potato Family. Commonly consumed vegetables like chilli, capsicum, tomato and potato all come within this family, according to Mr. Cariappa who said cross-pollination and genetic contamination was easily possible in an environment rich in wild pollinators like bees, butterflies, wasps, other insects and birds and this could destroy the pure variety and the genetic diversity of the region.

Citing instances of GE seeds polluting maize, canola and rapeseed which contaminated both wild and domesticated plants in other parts of the world, Mr. Cariappa drew attention to the long-term threat arising out of introduction of GE seeds on soil fertility.

Mr. Cariappa cited the example of German multinational company Bayer which produces GE rice seed in the U.S. and was taken to court by 200 farmers for contamination of their crop by the company’s transgenic variety.

He said: “Despite all precautions taken by the company and the farmers, contamination took place and this was a testimony of what could and will happen in India which has thousands of varieties of rice all of which would be at stake. It also shows that once a GE seed is released into the environment, it is not possible to predict what can go wrong nor is it possible to withdraw it once it has been assimilated into the living germplasm in the environment”.

Mr. Cariappa stressed on the need for a public movement against the introduction of GE crops.

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