The Centre would take a final decision on allowing commercial production of genetically modified Bt Brinjal within 10 days after consultations with various stakeholders, Union Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh said today.

Hyderabad: Union environment minister Jairam Ramesh on Sunday said the Centre would soon take a decision on whether to allow commercial cultivation of genetically modified Bt brinjal, even as he was heckled at a meet and asked to go back for failing to protect the interests of farmers.

High-decibel anti-Bt brinjal protests took centrestage for some time at the national consultation session chaired by Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh on Friday. Members of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch barged into the jam-packed Law Bhawan hall on Panjab University campus, where the minister was meeting farmers, NGOs, lawyers, doctors and scientists.

New Delhi: The debate on Bt brinjal is getting broader, with farmers and health experts putting their weight behind the campaign against commercial marketing and supply of the food crop. Even as scientists and farmers cry foul over the ill-effects of genetically modified crops, an equally large community of scientists and patent holders are making a strong case in favour of Bt brinjal.

The BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has a new argument against genetically modified crops

The now-familiar debate over Bt brinjal, the first genetically modified food crop almost poised for commercial production in India, posits greater productivity and resistance to pests against health and environmental concerns.

Refusing to take the sole blame for soaring commodity prices, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said on Sunday that price rise was a collective responsibility of the Cabinet, including that of the Prime Minister.

The farmers who were using urea in their farms are now busy in preparing

Ruing resistance to commercial cultivation of Bt brinjal in various parts of the country, biotechnology industry leaders and experts today said the opposition to the crop was induced by fear and did not have any scientific basis.

Amid raging debate over the release of Bt brinjal for commercial use, Science and Technology Minister Prithviraj Chavan today supported the genetically modified product for the first time, saying the controversial variety of the vegetable was