The Indian government has given a thumbs down to Bt brinjal, with environment minister Jairam Ramesh refusing to grant permission for its release till the safety of the vegetable has been “verified scientifically”, in terms of health and environment.

The activists and non-governmental organisations opposing Bt brinjal were elated but scientists expressed muted disapproval.

“I’m not convinced as of now. I cannot categorically say that there is any consensus among the scientific community. I have spoken to a large number of scientists. In this case science has been found inadequate,” Ramesh told journalists in a hurriedly called press conference on Tuesday. Earlier, the ministry had stated that a decision on Bt brinjal would be announced on Wednesday.

He, however, said that it did not mean a no to Bt brinjal forever. The moratorium was only till the time scientific tests establish it to be completely safe. “If we need long-term toxicity tests, so be it. Two years, three years, I am in no hurry. There are no over-riding food-security arguments for Bt brinjal,” he said.

Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company or Mahyco, the producer of Bt brinjal, issued a statement saying that they “respect” the statement of the environment minister. “We will follow the directives of the government. Mahyco is confident that sound science based on evidence obtained over nine years of rigorous testing will prevail,” the company said.

Mahyco, in a joint venture with US multinational Monsanto had marketed Bt cotton in India, which has been widely adopted by farmers. The multinational has no stake in Mahyco.

Monsanto did not directly react to the decision of the Indian government, but issued a press release clarifying that Mahyco, and not Monsanto, was the producer of the vegetable. The release also extolled the virtues of Bt cotton that the company had introduced in India.

Vandana Shiva, noted activist welcoming the decision said, “We’re very glad, it should have happened with Bt cotton too. It is the public hearings that shifted the ground against Bt brinjal this time.”

Attacking Monsanto she said the multinational was “trying to hide behind the back of its Indian partner. But the Bt technology is patented in their name and we have found several instances of fraud in the tests conducted”.

Bt brinjal is a genetically modified vegetable adopting the pest resistant quality of a bacteria bacillus thuringiensis. In the absence of such resistance, large amount of pesticides need to be used to kill a pest like the fruit and shoot borer, which is responsible for loss of 60 to 70 per cent of the produce in the country.

During his press conference, the minister stressed that his concern was in relation to Bt brinjal alone, and not for the larger issue of genetic engineering and biotechnology in agriculture. That brinjal is a food product made it a matter of more serious concern.

“The chairman of genetic engineer approval committee (GAEC) told me that tests for food products should be far more stringent than tests for drugs,” he said. He pointed out that scientists had advised him to exercise caution. “And I cannot go against science,” he added.

GAEC had approved the testing of Bt brinjal.

When asked whether scientists would say that he has succumbed to NGO pressure, Ramesh remarked, “Scientists will say that I succumbed to NGOs and NGOs will say I succumbed to Monsanto.”

On the issue of pesticides, the environment minister had responded “How to reduce pesticide use without compromising on food security at the macro-level is an urgent public policy. It is worth recalling that there are now close to 6 lakh farmers in Andhra Pradesh fully practicing Non-pesticide management (NPM)…it eliminates the use of chemicals completely while Bt technology only reduces it.”

Director of Centre for Science and Environment, an NGO, Sunita Narayan, said, “We are not against the use of genetically modified technology to improve crop yields. But we definitely oppose the introduction of Bt brinjal.” Her contention: “Brinjal is used for human consumption directly and not processed into bread or used in other processed foods. In many parts of the country, it is even eaten uncooked. We, therefore, need to be extremely cautious in our review of this food.” At present, she said, all research was funded by companies and then presented to regulators for clearance, leading to a crisis of credibility.

However, P Murugesa Boopathi, vice chancellor of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University had a different view. He said that Bt brinjal would not harm the soil quality and is safe for consumption as it will be free from pesticides. “Bt brinjal will definitely be a boon for farmers in the country. Our university has launched Bt brinjal in four varieties. We expect 40-50 per cent of brinjal farmers in Tamil Nadu to adopt our Bt brinjal varieties (if approved),” he added. The university had got the genetically modified technology on the brinjal from Mahyco, as did the University of Agricultural Sciences in Dharwad, Karnataka

Citing the success of Bt cotton, Boopathi said though there was some reluctance for growing Bt cotton introduced in 2002 in India, it has now been widely accepted after demonstrating higher profits with lower cost of cultivation. About 82 per cent of cultivation area in the country at present is under Bt cotton, he added.

zehranaqvi@mydigitalfc.com

(with inputs from G Balachandar)