The Hindu : National : No decision on extension of Bt cotton trial

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Saturday, Mar 05, 2005

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National

No decision on extension of Bt cotton trial

By Our Staff Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 4. The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) today deferred a decision on renewal of permission for commercial cultivation of three existing Bt cotton varieties in southern and central India, seeking further clarifications from various stakeholders.

However, the Committee allowed commercial cultivation of six hybrid varieties of hybrid cotton in Northern India. These varieties have been produced by Ankur, Rasi and Mahyco and will be grown in Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan.

According to an official spokesperson of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, the permission for commercial cultivation of new varieties was granted as sowing in northern India begins early. A decision on renewal of permission for commercial cultivation of three existing varieties of Bt cotton in southern and central India will be taken at the next meeting scheduled in April. The crucial meeting of the GEAC was to decide on extending permission to Mahyco-Monsanto Biotech to continue with its field trials of genetically modified varieties of cotton or Bt cotton in southern parts of the country. However, several non-governmental organisations, cotton-growers unions and environmentalists had strongly opposed any further trials on the ground that the controversial variety of cotton seed had failed to give the promised yield.The Committee expressed its desire to meet various farmers' groups, including Bharat Krishak Samaj and Hyderabad-based Centre for Sustainable Agriculture that had conducted scientific surveys to show that the Bt cotton had ``failed'' in all field trials, the official spokesperson said. Greenpeace and Sarvodaya Youth Organisation had on Thursday released documents alleging that the Andhra Pradesh Government had ``tampered'' with the annual review reports to reduce the compensation burden of Monsanto-Mahyco by more than Rs. 2 crores.

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