Delhi University scientist Deepak Pental, the inventor of genetically modified (GM) mustard, has said the Union government appeared interested in his product and was vetting transgenic farm technologies in general, but a “lot of noise” from the right and the left was stalling progress.
Pental, a plant-genetics professor and his team, developed India’s first public-sector driven GM crop, currently under regulatory evaluation …. Pental claims his product [offers] up to 25 times higher output.
The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), India’s biotech regulator, has asked Pental to conduct two more sets of tests to assess seed-production efficiency and impact on honey bees. The GEAC may then choose to approve or reject the product …. Pental said, “The very fact that the committees are meeting means that [the] government is interested… But the left and the right are opposed ….
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Pental’s product was nearly approved in 2017. Fresh tests were ordered after the environment ministry intervened following objections based on scientific evidence, said Kavitha Kuruganti, a key anti-GM campaigner.
Read full, original article: Government eyeing GM options but facing resistance, says scientist
