Skip to main content

Govt of india promoting GM, showing little concern for 'ecologically safe' farming

By Bharat Dogra* 

There have been several assertions on the part of the Union government at high levels that natural farming will be promoted by it in a big way. While natural farming has been interpreted often in different ways, generally the meaning sought to be conveyed is that ecologically safe practices to produce healthy food free of harmful chemicals will be promoted while ecologically harmful inputs will be avoided or phased out. In times of climate change, another aspect of natural farming is to minimize fossil fuels and GHG emissions.
While the government has launched several schemes in this direction, these generally remain at low levels and no significant scaling up has been seen yet. One of these schemes is Parampragat Krishi Vikas Yojana. Expenditure on this scheme was RR 329 crore in 2018-19, Rs 284 crore in 2019-20, Rs 381 crore in 2020-21 while the revised estimate for 2021-22 was down to just Rs 100 crore (one crore=10 million). This revised estimate incidentally was less than one-fourth of the original allocation (or budget estimate or BE).
The National Project on Soil Health and Fertility is also relevant in this context. The expenditure on this has come down. While Rs 314 crore was spent on this national project in 2018-19, Rs 159 crore was spent in 2019-20. This rose to Rs 200 crore in 2020-21 but the revised estimate next year took a low plunge to just Rs. 100 crore. This revised estimate was less than one-third of the original allocation (BE).
The Scheme of Rainfed Area Development and Climate Change is obviously relevant in this context but unfortunately its budget has been going downhill all the way. Expenditure on this scheme was Rs 216 crore in 2018-19 which went down to Rs 187 crore and then to Rs 128 crore in the next two years. The Revised Estimate in 2021-22 was down to Rs 110 crore.
A question that needs to be raised is -- if the government is really committed to natural farming, why is the government expenditure for all these schemes showing a declining trend?
Another important aspect of this issue is that the government has been taking important steps to promote GM (genetically modified) foods and crops. While India has been firmly committed to banning GM foods till recently, the government has initiated changes in regulations that, as pointed out by several critics, are likely to lead to more availability of imported genetically modified (GM) foods.
What is even worse, despite the fact that the technology of gene editing has been equated to that of GM crops, at scientific and legal levels, the government has gone ahead with introducing it which amounts to a backdoor entry for GM crops including, in all probability, GM food crops.
If we recall the very intense debates and big mobilizations that had taken place in the earlier contexts of attempts at introducing genetically modified versions first of brinjal and then of mustard, resulting in firm refusal to their introduction, it appears that the government is now pursuing the highly hazardous agenda of introducing GM foods and crops in a more shrewd and subtle way.
However, because of their very high risks for environment and health, the agenda of GM crops cannot co-exist with the agenda of natural farming. The government’s claims of taking forward natural farming are completely false if it is also at the same time pursing the agenda of GM crops.
At world level the technology of GM crops and foods is highly concentrated in the hands of a few giant multinational companies which are also involved in hundreds of serious legal cases relating to the serious harm already caused by them.
If government is really committed to natural farming, why is expenditure for its schemes showing a declining trend?
Prof Pushpa M Bhargava, Founder of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, was India’s most renowned authority on this issue and he was also appointed by the Supreme Court of India as an observer in the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee. A little before his death he summarized the state of the debate on this issue in these words:
“There are over 500 research publications by scientists of indisputable integrity who have no conflict of interest, that establish harmful effects of GM crops on human, animal and plant health and on environment and biodiversity. For example, a recent paper by Indian scientists showed that Bt gene in both cotton and brinjal leads to inhibition of growth and development of the plant. On the other hand, virtually every paper supporting GM crops is by scientists who have a declared conflict of interest or whose credibility and integrity can be doubted.”
She also drew attention to the "attempt by a small but powerful minority to propagate genetically modified crops to serve their interests and those of multinational corporations (read the US), the bureaucracy, the political set-up and a few unprincipled and unethical scientists and technologists who can be used as tools." Further, she warned that the ultimate aim of this attempt in India, led by multinational companies, is to take over Indian agriculture and hence food production.
If the government thinks that it will promote natural farming along with GM crops, then this is mutually contradictory and hence not realizable. As the group of eminent scientists organized under the Independent Science Panel has stated very clearly, “GM crops have failed to deliver the promised benefits and are posing escalating problems on the farm. Transgenic contamination is now widely acknowledged to be unavoidable, and hence there can be co-existence of GM and non-GM agriculture.”
In this and several other contexts the government has shown itself to be guided more by the interests of big agribusiness corporations, domestic and foreign. In the case of edible oils, the government’s promotion of palm oil tree monocultures will be at the cost of forest and farm biodiversity in ecologically sensitive areas.
Hence the government’s claims of being committed to natural farming have to be taken with not a pinch but a bowlful of salt.
---
*Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now; recent books include ‘A Day in 2071’, ‘Man over Machine' and ‘Planet in Peril'

Comments

TRENDING

Importance of Bangladesh for India amidst 'growing might' of China in South Asia

By Samara Ashrat*  The basic key factor behind the geopolitical importance of Bangladesh is its geographical location. The country shares land borders with Myanmar and India. Due to its geographical position, Bangladesh is a natural link between South Asia and Southeast Asia.  The country is also a vital geopolitical ally to India, in that it has the potential to facilitate greater integration between Northeast India and Mainland India. Not only that, due to its open access to the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh has become significant to both China and the US.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam*  The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

'A disaster in the making': Expansion of oil palm plantations in Northeast India

By Rupa Chinai, Ravi Chellam*  Until a few decades ago, India was nearly 100% self-sufficient in edible oils, with a diverse variety of oilseeds that were grown and consumed sustainably in keeping with the ecological and climatic conditions of different regions in the country. Today, India is highly reliant on palm oil imports to meet its vegetable oil demands. 

'BBC film shows only tip of iceberg': Sanjiv Bhatt's daughter speaks at top US press club

By Our Representative   The United States' premier journalists' organisation, the National Press Club (NPC), has come down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recent "attacks on journalists in India." Speaking at the screening of an episode of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question,” banned in India, in the club premises, NPC President Eileen O’Reilly said, “Since Modi came to power we have watched with frustration and disappointment as his regime has suppressed the rights of its citizens to a free and independent news media."

Chinese pressure? Left stateless, Rohingya crisis result of Myanmar citizenship law

By Dr Shakuntala Bhabani*  A 22-member team of Myanmar immigration officials visited Rohingya refugee camps in Cox's Bazar to verify more than 400 Rohingya refugees as part of a pilot repatriation project. Does it hold out any hope for the forcibly displaced people to return to their ancestral homes in the Rakhine state of Myanmar? Only time will tell.

China ties up with India, Bangladesh to repatriate Rohingyas; Myanmar unwilling

By Harunur Rasid*  We now have a new hope, thanks to news reports that were published in the Bangladeshi dailies recently. Myanmar has suddenly taken initiatives to repatriate Rohingyas. As part of this initiative, diplomats from eight countries posted in Yangon were flown to Rakhine last week. Among them were diplomats from Bangladesh, India and China.

40,000 Odisha adolescent girls ask CM: Why is scheme to fight malnutrition on paper?

By Our Representative  In unique a postcard campaign to combat malnutrition, aimed at providing dietary diversity, considered crucial during adolescence, especially among girls, signed by about 40,000 adolescent girls from over 10,000 villages, have reminded Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik that his government's Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG), which converged with Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman  ( POSHAN ) 2.0 in 2021, is not being implemented in the State.

Natural farming: Hamirpur leads the way to 'huge improvement' in nutrition, livelihood

By Bharat Dogra*  Santosh is a dedicated farmer who along with his wife Chunni Devi worked very hard in recent months to convert a small patch of unproductive land into a lush green, multi-layer vegetable garden. This has ensured year-round supply of organically grown vegetables to his family as well as fetched several thousand rupees in cash sales.