Biotech is the answer to global warming, population

Express News Service
First Published : 06 Nov 2009 02:55:00 AM IST
Last Updated :

HYDERABAD: Biotechnology alone has the answer to the twin challenges of gloabl warming and population growth, Department of Biotechnology secretary MK Bhan says.

Reacting to widespread protests against the approval for Bt brinjal, Bhan says that the regulatory committee will approve its cultivation and consumption after taking all safety measures.

In a chat with Express, he says that the country’s population will reach 1.3 billion by the end of 2030 and Bt is the solution to the growing demand for foodgrains. ``We cannot close our eyes to science.

We are taking decisions on approving Bt varieties case by case.’’ Some drugs and vaccines have been withdrawn from the market as they are not safe for humans. He, however, assures that all safety measures will be taken by the regulatory committee while approving Bt brinjal and other products fit for consumption.

``Trials are being conducted in a scientific way and in accordance with the recommendations made by noted agricultural scientist MS Swaminathan. All Bt varieties of food are not transgenic.

In some cases, `novel makers’ are being identified for development.’’ On the Bt Regulatory Authority Bill, Bhan says that the law department has okayed the draft which will be placed before the Union Cabinet in the next ten days.

Once the bill is passed by Parliament, the Bt Regulatory Authority will regulate Bt agriculture. The Bt industry, which had a 40 per cent growth in the past, recorded 18 per cent growth last year due to the economic slowdown.

The present turnover of Bt in the country is $ 2.8 billion and is expected to reach $ 7 billion by 2013.

Turning to pharmaceutical research, Bhan says, research on malaria (Vivax), dengue, influenza, particularly H1N1 virus, is being conducted in the country. Of the 270 biotech companies in the country, if one or two are grown into larger companies the country will be self-sufficient in pharmaceutical and other sectors, he notes.

Going in for Bt cotton is a fad: a study by US expert

VV Balakrishna
First published on Feb 2, 2007
Farmers in the state are going for Bt ctoon lured by advertisements and marketing strategies of the seed producing companies and bringing onthemselves environmental and economic crisis, says an extensive studymade in Warangal district by Glenn Davis Stone of Washington Universityduring 2003-05.Stone is a professor of Anthropology and Environmental Studies atWashington University (St Louis). His findings were published in an article titled ``Agriculture De-skilling and the Spread of GeneticallyModified Cotton in Warangal,'' in the February issue of the reputedjournal ``Current Anthropology''.In the article, Stone observers that Warangal district is a key cotton-growing area in one of the most closely watchedarenas of the global struggle over genetically modified crops. In 2005 farmers adopted India's first genetically modified crop, Bt cotton, in numbersthat resembled a fad. Various parties, including the bio-technology, interpret the spread as result of farmers' experimentation and management skills, alluding to orthodox innovation-dillusion theory. However, a multi-year ethnography of Warangal cotton farmers shows a striking pattern of localilsed, ephemeral cotton seed fad precedingthe spread of the genetically modified seeds. The Bt cotton fad is symptomatic of systemic disruption of the process of experimentationand develpment of management skills, according to Stone. In fact, Warangal cotton farming offers a case study in agriculturede-skilling, a process that differs fundamentally from the better-knownprocess of industrial de-skilling. In terms of cultural evolution theory, de-skilling is a vital link between enviromental and social learning, to propogate practices with little or no environmental basis. Stone's study reveals that genetically modified crops affect farmersin developing countries, argues Kavitha Kuruganti of Centre for Sustainable Agriculture. Stone termed the selection of Bt cotton seed by the farmers as a fad and lacking any skill. This trend will erodethe knowledge base available with them and push them into environmentaland agro-economic crisis, she told Express. Cotton farmers in the state select seed varities depending on advertisements and are driven by marketing strategies rather than weighing whether a particular seed variety is suitable for a particularclimate and soil. Thus, farmers become vulnerable to losses, Kavithaadds. Stone's findings will be forwarded to Genetic Engineering ApprovalCommittee (GEAC), according to her.