Chairman of Review Committee for Genetic Manipulations (RCGM) Dr B Sesikeran … said by stalling Bt brinjal [eggplant], India has only done more harm than good while neighbouring Bangladesh has reaped its benefits.
“Over 6,000 farmers are benefiting from it and not a single person has died,” said Sesikeran….
Sesikeran, who is also chairman of scientific panel FSSAI, feels taking a cue from across the border, farmers from West Bengal too would soon adopt the genetically modified (GM) crops.
“A large part of Bangladesh is consuming Bt brinjal [eggplant]. The next would be GM mustard that they will adopt based on India’s food safety trials and we are still stuck. The previous government issued a moratorium and the present government doesn’t have any plans. But we need to look at future and augment our food production,” he said.
The RCGM chairman said technology holds answer to our growing needs and the government needs to plan its implementation properly.
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[Said Sesikeran]: Organic vegetables, grains or fruits are not for the poor. It is the rich man’s food. After investing so much, the yield is not enough to feed the whole country.”The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: Stalling Bt brinjal has caused harm to India, says expert