GM mustard trials

•  The Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed the environment ministry to reveal safety data regarding trials of genetically modified (GM) mustard without further delay.
• CIC has noted that any attempt to postpone or delay the disclosure will block the public discussion on the controversial issue.
• The CIC has also directed the ministry to put in the public domain bio-safety data pertaining to all other GMOs (genetically modified organisms) in the pipeline.
• CIC, in April, had pulled up the environment ministry over its lack of transparency on trials of GM crops and had directed it to make public all information, including bio-safety data, related to the field trials of the GM mustard crop before 30 April. However, instead of furnishing information, the authority requested for two more months. Further, it sought another extension, this time for 90 days.
• The GM mustard in question—DMH-11—has been developed by the Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants of Delhi University. If it gets the green light from the environment ministry’s GEAC, it will be the first GM food crop to be commercially cultivated in India. Right now, only GM cotton is allowed. GEAC is the environment ministry’s regulator for GMOs and transgenic products
• Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can be defined as organisms (i.e. plants, animals or microorganisms) in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination. The technology is often called “modern biotechnology” or “gene technology”, sometimes also “recombinant DNA technology” or “genetic engineering”. It allows selected individual genes to be transferred from one organism into another, also between nonrelated species. Foods produced from or using GM organisms are often referred to as GM foods

Analysis:

• Genetically-engineered crops can cause insecticides to build up in the soil, affect the food chain, transfer genes to wild relatives and contaminate natural crops.
• `Gene stacking' in GM crops is a major concern, more so for mustard/rapeseed. Stacking is what happens when more than one GM trait is found in the same plant, as a result of cross-pollination in the field. The agronomic and ecological impact of cumulative transgene stacking is poorly understood and this may lead to farmers using more herbicides, potentially resulting in increased damage to biodiversity. It can also lead to `the gradual development of `weediness' in native species'. If a neighbouring farm also unknowingly used GM-contaminated seed, this would be an obvious way for stacking to occur.
• The genetically-modified mustard is, in reality, a hybrid. And, like any other hybrid it requires to be cultivated under more intensive farming practices. At a time when sustainable farming and low-input agriculture are becoming the buzzwords, it is surprising that agricultural scientists continue to recommend crop varieties that will end up doing more harm to the environment and crop fields.
• GM mustard will require almost double the quantity of fertiliser and water, thereby accentuating the sustainability barriers that green revolution areas already faced.
• Health concerns include: allergenicity; gene transfer, especially of antibiotic-resistant genes, from GM foods to cells or bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract; and `outcrossing', or the movement of genes from GM plants to conventional crops, posing indirect threats to food safety and security.
• GM mustard can affect honeybees directly and indirectly through effecting flowering and pollen production.
• GM mustard is the first food crop to have applied for commercialisation after the indefinite ban on the GM brinjal in 2010.
• Also, Complaints against a less-than-robust regulatory environment for genetically modified organisms in the country are genuine. There is lack of transparency as well as conflict of interest in the system. The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, which is responsible for approving large-scale releases and commercialisation of GMOs, functions under the Ministry of Environment and Forests and is not entirely independent. The case of the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation that supervises and clears research activities and also small-scale field trials is even more stark. It is part of the Department of Biotechnology, whose primary task is to promote biotechnology. DBT therefore is the promoter as well as the regulator. On several occasions, developers of transgenic crops have also been members of regulatory committees. Government plan to merge various authority into single has not fulfilled yet. To create more accountable system such steps needed to be taken.

By: Vishal