The Coalition of GM-free India, a group of NGOs opposing genetically modified crops, on Friday released a report alleging "violations" in the evaluation and approval of GM mustard, including non-participation of health experts in appraisal.
There was no immediate response from the environment ministry on the report.
What is GM Mustard
In October, the environment ministry allowed the environmental release of the Dhara Mustard Hybrid (DMH-11), a transgenic mustard developed by Delhi University for its seed production and testing before its commercial release.
It is a Herbicide Tolerant (HT) mustard variety that has undergone genetic modification. It has two alien genes —"barnase" and "barstar" -- isolated from a soil bacterium called Bacillus, amyloliquefaciens. It enables the breeding of high-yielding commercial mustard hybrids.
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At present, Cotton is the only GM crop allowed for cultivation in India.
What are Concerns
Before the testing could start, the coalition approached the Supreme Court seeking its directions to stop the trials.
According to activists and farmers, GM mustard is a herbicide-tolerant crop and toxic chemicals sprayed on the plant would impact the health of the people consuming it. They also argue that it is environmentally unsustainable and does not suit Indian agricultural conditions. The report comes ahead of a crucial hearing by the apex court on the matter on January 10.
The Coalition of GM-free India cited information received through RTI, media reports, and government guidelines in the report and alleged that "the approval demonstrates total failure of India's limited biosafety regulations and also showcases the serious deficiencies in the regulatory regime". Quoting a media report, the group said the Directorate of Rapeseed Mustard Research had received the seeds on October 22 last year before the formal approval was given on October 25.
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They said, citing RTI responses, that no (independent) health expert ever participated in GM mustard appraisal. The coalition said GM mustard did not get tested as a herbicide-tolerant (HT) crop because there are no regulatory guidelines and protocols for HT crops. GEAC (Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee), the country's regulator for genetically modified organisms, "kept prescribing tests to be undertaken on GM mustard, but when the applicant sought exemption, kept agreeing to the requests", it claimed.
The report stated, "Livestock feeding studies approved but not done even though the AG read out from one GEAC meeting minutes in the SC about studies on goats and rabbits." The coalition alleged that the Centre and regulators seriously endangered "public health, environmental safety, and socio-economic considerations" and undermined the state governments' constitutional authority over agriculture.
"The Attorney General on behalf of the central government has been attempting to move the bench's attention away from the court-appointed Technical Expert Committee's ban recommendation with regard to herbicide-tolerant crop which is based on scientific evidence," said Kavitha Kuruganti of the coalition. The report presents 15 examples of "serious regulatory violations and infirmities to show that what the Centre is claiming about the robustness of our regulatory regime is a set of falsehoods yet again", Sridhar Radhakrishnan, Co-Convenor of the coalition, said.
The report shows how even without a formal approval letter being issued, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) jumped into the picture, on behalf of a third-party applicant, to ensure that seeds are planted in "great haste, and a fait accompli delivered", Radhakrishnan said. "We show the timing of when a GM mustard developer is made into a GEAC member and how he participated, despite what the AG tried to showcase to the court. We show how testing of GM mustard for environmental safety violates the limited guidelines/protocols laid down in India's regulatory regime. Similarly for food safety too," Radhakrishnan added.
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(With Inputs from PTI)
