Balwinder Singh Kang had been a farmer for over three decades. He cultivates cotton, wheat, vegetables and mustard at Hanumangarh in Rajasthan, but the mustard crop had been troublesome for him in recent times. He was forced to sell this year’s crop at Rs 3,200 per quintal, well below the minimum support price of Rs 3,700. Prices were low because the state government did not buy mustard. “If prices are low,” says Kang, “the only option for me is to increase yield. “We get 10-12 quintal per hectare while the potential is 30-40 quintal.”
So Kang is awaiting high yielding varieties in general, and GM mustard in particular. GM mustard, developed by the Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants (CGMCP) in Delhi University, had been undergoing development for over two decades. In a meeting on May 11, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) had given it approval. It can be released for commercial use once the minister for environment, forest and climate change approves the GEAC decision. However, once GEAC’s decision somehow became public, activists and other pressure groups against genetically-modified crops have started a campaign, leaving farmers like Kang nervous.
Agricultural scientists are nervous too. Suren Tikoo, a breeder in a public lab and a few private companies for four decades, thinks clearance for GM mustard is critical to excite Indian companies to invest in agriculture research. “Most companies have stopped GM research,” says Tikoo, who is director of research at Pune-based Tierra Seed Science and not involved in GM mustard development.
“Agriculture PhDs are not getting jobs.” Scientists across the country think motivating brilliant young minds to take up agricultural research is important for India and that stopping growth of one major area can discourage students from taking up agriculture research as a career. Genetically modified crops have been a contentious issue in India for over two decades.
So Kang is awaiting high yielding varieties in general, and GM mustard in particular. GM mustard, developed by the Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants (CGMCP) in Delhi University, had been undergoing development for over two decades. In a meeting on May 11, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) had given it approval. It can be released for commercial use once the minister for environment, forest and climate change approves the GEAC decision. However, once GEAC’s decision somehow became public, activists and other pressure groups against genetically-modified crops have started a campaign, leaving farmers like Kang nervous.
Agricultural scientists are nervous too. Suren Tikoo, a breeder in a public lab and a few private companies for four decades, thinks clearance for GM mustard is critical to excite Indian companies to invest in agriculture research. “Most companies have stopped GM research,” says Tikoo, who is director of research at Pune-based Tierra Seed Science and not involved in GM mustard development.
“Agriculture PhDs are not getting jobs.” Scientists across the country think motivating brilliant young minds to take up agricultural research is important for India and that stopping growth of one major area can discourage students from taking up agriculture research as a career. Genetically modified crops have been a contentious issue in India for over two decades.