The Hindu Business Line : Bt brinjal: No outstanding bio-safety issues

After the fibre crop Bt. Cotton, genetically-engineered food crops look set for more action, with Bt. Brinjal (eggplant) and golden rice expected to be released in the country in less than three years.

According to Dr Sajiv Anand, Director of All India Crop Biotechnology Association (AICBA), genetically-engineered brinjal (Bt. Brinjal) is likely to be cleared for commercialisation by the end of this year. Large-scale field trials have already been completed.

Another GM food crop to be cleared for commercial cultivation is golden rice. According to Dr G.J.N Rao of Central Rice Research Institute (Cuttack) golden rice is scheduled to be released in India by 2012.

Allaying fears over the safety of GM crops, AICBA-Director Dr Anand and Dr Ranjekar, Director of Research at Bhartiya Vidyapeeth asserted that there were no outstanding bio-safety issues as far as Bt. Brinjal was concerned. The elaborate process of approval from various regulatory bodies ensured that all concerns regarding safety of genetically modified food have been taken care of, they said.

"Why does it take 8 years to approve a file?" Dr. Anand added suggesting a thorough study was undertaken before the expected release of Bt Brinjal this year.

Bt. Brinjal farmers use less pesticides, effectively reducing the cost of production for the farmer, and preventing toxic chemical exposure of pesticides to the end-consumer, Dr Anand explained. Businessline tried to contact Mr Pradip Dave, President of Pesticides Manufacturers & Formulators Association of India for his comments but did not receive a response till the time of going to press.

Mr Rajesh Krishnan from environmental group Greenpeace India, however, criticized moves to introduce GM food. Bt.Brinjal is a threat to food safety and an independent review by Committee for Independent Research and Information on Genetic Engineering has shown serious discrepancies between raw data and results provided by GM producers, he argued.

Though the Indian Council of Agricultural Research and the Department of Biotechnology have reportedly approved Bt. Brinjal, its cultivation will be allowed in India only after a final clearance from the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation and the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, he added.

Golden Rice

Golden rice, marketed as rice fortified with Vitamin A, seeks to fill the lack of the vitamin in the diet. But anti-GM activists counter that there are safer and better ways of ensuring sufficient levels of Vitamin A in food by re-introducing vitamin-rich vegetables in the staple diet. They claim that golden rice is being used as a Trojan horse to increase acceptability of GM food.

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