This refers to the report “Environmentalist warns about GM crops” (Jan.11), where noted environmentalist and former Chairman of the Kerala State Bio-Diversity Board, V.S. Vijayan, has warned the Kerala government about the dangers of Genetically Modified (GM) crops. It seems Mr. Vijayan is ill-informed about basic facts on GM crops. He should provide evidence that “in the case of BT bringal, Kerala alone has more than 2,500 varieties of brinjal,” which is not true. It is not a myth that GM crops increase yield and address poverty. It is true that none of the existing GM crops is not engineered to increase yield, but they do increase yield by making up for the yield drag due to pests and diseases. It is equally true that household incomes of Bt cotton farmers in India have gone up by almost Rs.20,000 per acre, which in turn has increased their Gross Domestic Happiness (GDH) by facilitating their family's access to more food, clothing, and health care.
Anyone interested in these findings needs to read the independent peer reviewed research report of Prof. N. Chandrasekhara Rao and Prof. S. Mahendra Dev of the Centre for Economic and Social Studies (CESS), Hyderabad.
Dr. Shanthu Shantharam,
Executive Director,
Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises – Agricultural Group (ABLE-AG), New Delhi
