Bt Brinjal: Greenpeace condemns government’s double talk

NEW DELHI - Global environmental activist group Greenpeace Friday slammed the government’s ambiguity on the commercial release of Bt Brinjal, adding that a clear stand was the need of the hour.

A day after Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh wrote to Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar disagreeing with the latter’s statement endorsing the cultivation of the the genetically modified crop, the NGO said that battle on Bt Brinjal had reached new heights.

It is shocking to see that on the one hand experts and public are raising concerns on Bt Brinjal in the public consultations being held by the Ramesh and on the other hand other union ministers are taking the side of seed industry and promoting Bt Brinjal.

“It’s high time the government came out in one voice and clarify whose side they are on, said Rajesh Krishnan, sustainable agriculture campaigner from Greenpeace India.

In October last year, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) which is the government’s biotech regulator approved the commercialisation of the genetically modified crop. Now the environment ministry has to decide if Bt Brinjal will be allowed for commercial use. On Jan 13 the ministry started a series of public consultations on the issue.

The environment minister has now put the process on hold after major brinjal producing states that account for over 60 percent of the produce refused to endorse the product.

Greenpeace stated: “At least eight state governments have openly declared that they do not want Bt Brinjal to be approved. The latest was Karnataka (Wednesday) which joined states like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.

The past few days has seen other ministries coming out in support of Bt Brinjal. While Science and Technology Minister Prithviraj Chauhan said he supported the clearance of the biotech regulator, Minister of State for Health Dinesh Trivedi said his ministry would look into the issue with a cautious approach.