Agricultural scientists and economists have urged the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to intervene in the Technical Expert Committees’ recommendations advocating a ban on field trials and 10-year moratorium on commercialization of genetically modified crops.
A declaration signed by over 50 globally renowned scientists held these recommendations detrimental to development of science and harnessing the potential of biotechnology for reviving the country’s agriculture to accelerate poverty reduction and reduce malnourishment. The declaration was sent to PM's office for intervention.
The Committee appointed by the Supreme Court to assess the safety of GM crops, had in its interim reported on Thursday, said that the field trials of all edible GM crops meant for human consumption should be suspended immediately and a 10-year moratorium should be levied for their commercialization.
The declaration further said that the Committee’s analysis does not reflect the scientific evidence. In this background, agricultural economists and social scientists worldwide working on the impact of genetically modified crops in particular on Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton in India came together to state that the Committee’s report is not objective. They unanimously asserted that GM crop technologies can play a very important positive role towards food security and sustainable development.
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