The minister of environment and forests Jairam Ramesh, has finally responded positively to the storm of protests, and called off the government's decision to introduce the privately developed Bt brinjal seed for commercial cultivation.
The ordinary brinjal has won the day. Mounting pressure forced Union forests and environment minister Jairam Ramesh to revoke the decision of the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee on Tuesday and defer commercial cultivation of what could have been India's first genetically modified vegetable crop.
THE APPROVAL of Bt Brinjal by the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) has exposed the unscientific basis on which genetically-engineered crops are being commercialised, and it raises questions about the entire bio-safety process.
NEW DELHI: India needs an independent biotechnology regulator and a transparent testing system, according to Union Minister of State for Environment Jairam Ramesh, who declared a moratorium on Bt brinjal on Tuesday.
New Delhi: The government on Tuesday decided to put the commercial cultivation of Bt brinjal on hold, bowing to protests from activists, resistance from opposition as well as Congress governments and suspicions about the genetically modified crops.
