BT Brinjal to eat or not to eat

After the failure of genetically modified cotton seeds, the safety concerns are attached with the BT brinjal.Some environmental experts say that the use of genetically modified BT brinjal on rats could be fatal. It should be better to go under through research before experimenting it on humans. .Another question remains unanswered, why government is in hurry to give nod to BT brinjal forcommercial use? It should not be experimented on Indians first.

Health Problems:

1.Rats fed Bt brinjal had diarrhoea, increased water consumption; decrease in liver weight, and liver to body weight. Feed intake was modified in broiler chickens.

2. Changes in lactating cows were observed in increased weight gain, intake of more dry roughage matter and milk production up by 10 to 14 percent as if they were treated by a hormone.

3.Bt brinjal appears to have 15 percent less calories and different alkaloid content compared to non GM brinjal. It contains 16 to 17 mg/kg Bt insecticide toxin. When fed to animals, effects were observed on blood chemistry with significant differences according to the s*x of the animal or period of measurement. Other effects were on blood clotting time, total bilirubin, and alkaline phosphate in goats and rabbits.

4.Bt brinjal produces a protein in the vegetable cells that induce antibiotic resistance. This is recognised as a major health problem and is inappropriate for commercialised use. It may also indicate that old GM technology is being used as the technology has already moved on from antibiotic resistance markergenes.

GM crops are not just about science; they are about food safety, consumer choice, health, agro-ecology, farmer livelihoods, seed sovereignty, social justice, bio-diversity, biosafety and, above all, the threat of irreversible contamination of the biosphere. It is well known that the largest pesticide manufacturers in the world are also the largest seed companies (all of who are in the business of producing GM seeds). Once GM food crops are approved, these companies can peddle both pesticides and GM seeds. So, I feel we cannot approve Bt.brinjal without thorough investigation on the above said grounds.

Dear Suchitra, Great, and thank you for the responds.So what is the prsent position of India MOE on the issues.

 What does BT stand for?

Bt stands for bacillus thuringiensis, a common soil bacterium toxic to lepidopteran insects. When "Bt" is placed before a plant name, such as in "Bt Brinjal" (the brinjal is known in the US as eggplant), it means the plant has been genetically modified to produce a protein toxic to certain insects in the same way the bacteria does.

Giving to the intense opposition from NGOs and several States, the Govt has put to hold commercial cultivation of genetically modified brinjal citing lack of consensus within scientific community. Environment minister has reitereated this that, till the independent  scientific studies establish, to the stisfaction of both public and prfessionals, the safety of the product  from long term view on the impact of human health they cannot accept Bt brinjal in India.

Thank you Suchitra.

 Many thanks to Suchitra for clarification

Good info Suchitra ji :)

The row over Bt Brinjal, a genetically modified version of the plant, provoked the government into imposing a moratorium on the commercial cultivation of the plant in India.  The debate has revolved around issues of economic efficacy, human health, consumer choice and farmers’ rights.

Jairam Ramesh, the Minister of State for Environment and Forests, made public his views on the subject, a gist of which is given below:

• The Genetic Engineering Approvals Committee (GEAC) report recommended commercial cultivation of Bt Brinjal but qualified it by stating that since the issue has important policy implications at the national level, the government should take a final view on the matter.
• Most of the state governments have expressed concern and have sought to ban the use of Bt Brinjal, or all GM crops.
• Pesticides have harmful effect on human health and Bt technology is one way of reducing pesticide use.  However, other routes such as non-pesticide pest management can be explored.  For example, about 6 lakh farmers in Andhra Pradesh practice non-pesticide pest management over an area of about 20 lakh acres.
• Safety is a concern since the kind of tests that have been done is not specific or stringent enough to detect toxins.  Also, tests have only been carried out by the developers of the product, Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company Ltd. (Mahyco).  (The results of the biosafety tests are available on the GEAC website).
• There is no large-scale public funded biotechnology effort toward agriculture, which could compete with Mahyco.  Monsanto is the main producer of Bt Brinjal, and Mahyco is owned to the extent of 26% by Monsanto.
• While two government owned agricultural universities — University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore – have produced Bt Brinjal along with Mahyco, doubts have been raised about how Bt related research in these universities have been funded.
• There are apprehensions that there will be diversity loss in the variety of Brinjal if Bt Brinjal is introduced, and this fear cannot be glossed over.
• While Bt Cotton and Bt Brinjal are not comparable, the introduction of Bt Cotton in India has made India the second largest grower of cotton in the world.  Over 90% of cotton farmers in India cultivate Bt Cotton.  Many farmers support Bt Cotton on economic grounds but some did express doubts.
• The Central Institute of Cotton Research, Nagpur has developed a Bt cotton variety (Bikaneri Nerma) whose seeds can be kept by farmers for planting during the next season.  The Director of the Institute while expressing support for Bt Brinjal has mentioned that resistance development is a serious issue.  Therefore, more tests that are well-designed, widely-accepted and independently conducted are necessary.
• The GEAC process has been questioned by  Dr P.M. Bhargava, the Supreme Court nominee on GEAC.  He opposed the recommendation on the ground that all necessary tests had not been carried out before coming to a decision.  The 2006 committee of the GEAC had asked for several tests to be conducted which were not taken into account by the second expert committee.  All GEAC reports (including additional tests) of tests conducted with regard to Bt Brinjal are in the public domain.
• There is some evidence that the GEAC not followed global regulatory norms of which India is a party.  For example, the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, Rio Declaration on Environment and Development etc.
• Some international scientists have raised doubts about Bt Brinjal and the way the tests were conducted.
• Many Indian scientists have supported commercialization of Bt Brinjal such as Dr G. Padmanabhan of the Indian Institute of Science; Dr Deepak Pental, Vice Chancellor of Delhi University; and Dr Raj Bhatnagar of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi.  However, even they have mentioned the need for a statutory body with regulatory powers and R&D capabilities to govern all aspects of GM crops.
• The Indian Council of Agricultural research and a number of farmer’s groups have come out in support of the move to introduce Bt Brinjal.

In order to understand the process followed by GEAC before giving the green signal to Bt Brinjal, we have made a timeline in which the plant was approved and the bodies involved in the process.

LINK:https://prsindia.org/theprsblog/2010/02/11/to-eat-or-not-to-eat-bt-brinjal/

 I think Jairam Ramesh has been battered enough to introduce it. 

My suggestion is:

All the BT vegetables be grown in a government farm and fed to all the MPs, MLAs, and Ministers and then analyse.

Exactly Anil sir. Even they are fond of foreign goods. Their next generation will be immune from any kind of attack of diseases.

On rethinking, I find that nothing will happen to them after eating all the BT produce. They have already developed immune syndrome.