The Hindu Business Line : An Indian farmer bats for new technology

MR M.S. Shankarikoppa, a 74-year old from Adur village in Haveri district of Karnataka, is a farmer of modest means but with progressive ideas. He is one of the growing number of farmers starting to benefit from planting genetically-modified cottonseed.

He cultivates about 14 acres of land and has supplemental water facilities in the form of borewell to tend crops such as groundnut, maize, paddy and sugarcane.

Mr Shankarikoppa has turned an unabashed admirer of the latest technology - GM seeds — that helps him cut crop losses, reduce expenses and make a higher profit than he used to. He is one of the participants at BIO 2004 here - the annual convention of the world's biotechnology industry.

Speaking to Business Line on the sidelines of the convention, the progressive Indian farmer - dressed in traditional style that marked him apart - said he was one of the first cotton growers in the country to have started planting Bt cotton in 1998 when the Government cleared the seed for field trails.

There has been no looking back for him since then. Bt cotton is an engineered cottonseed that contains a gene from bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and is known to fight bollworm, the pest that attacks cotton plants and cuts yields.

"Commercial cultivation of Bt cotton began in 2002. Every year, I allot two acres for the new variety which gives me a yield of 15 quintals per acre as compared with 5-6 quintals that non-Bt varieties produce," he said adding that eventhough Bt cotton seed is costly, it is profitable to plant it because of savings on other inputs.

"Although the seed is more expensive by around Rs 1,000, I save about Rs 2,000 per acre in terms of reduced sprays (of agro-chemicals) under normal conditions," he remarked.

Disclosing that in Haveri district, more than 75 per cent farmers growing cotton under semi-irrigated conditions in the kharif season had taken to Bt cotton, Mr Shankarikoppa pointed out that in 2002, about 3,000 acres were planted to the new variety of cotton in his area, and the next year it expanded to 8,000 acres.

"For 2004 season, seeds for about 25,000 acres have already been sold," he said.

When quizzed on the efficacy of the new technology and whether the seed solved all the pest and disease problems, the progressive farmer categorically stated: "The seed is meant to kill bollworm and it does its job."

Mr Shankarikoppa has no hesitation in experimenting and adopting new technologies; nor is he afraid of threats from activists. He had challenged the protestors 3-4 years ago to prove that the technology was harmful. The violent movement against Bt cotton found in several parts of Karnataka a few years ago has of course considerably mellowed now.

According to him, the activists are not farmers and therefore, do not know about the benefits the technology can deliver.

"In our area, seed borer is a big problem for maize. If genetically-modified maize (corn) is introduced in India, I will not hesitate to plant it," he asserted.

Farmers like Mr Shankarikoppa who have reaped real benefits from embracing new technology and planting modified crops are likely to be the most vocal advocates in the country for introduction of agbiotech products. Clearly, life science companies have found new spokespersons to take the message to policymakers.

The US Grains Council has organised a biotechnology tour of the corn-growing areas for media representatives from around the world to showcase how American farmers have benefited from using modified corn.

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