RSS affiliates SJM, BKS demand withdrawal of approval to GM mustard

Two RSS-affiliated outfits on Friday demanded the withdrawal of the clearance for the environmental release of genetically modified (GM) mustard.

The Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) shot off a letter to the Union environment ministry terming GM mustard "dangerous" and "unneeded." The SJM, a think tank affiliated with the RSS, the ideological parent of the BJP, urged the Centre to ensure that the crop's seed is not allowed to be planted "now or ever."

The RSS-affiliated farmers' outfit, the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), asked how the country's biotech regulator took its decision without relying on any studies conducted in India. It said the Enforcement Directorate-Income Tax Department should look into the subject, if necessary.

On October 18, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), an arm of the Union environment ministry, issued permits to the developer, the Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants, under Delhi University, for the "environmental release" of GM mustard, which would pave the way for commercial production of GM mustard. Geneticist Deepak Pental heads the DU team. The GEAC is the authority to approve trials and release of GM crops in India.

Read | India gives environmental approval for genetically-modified mustard

In its letter to Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, the SJM's co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan accused the GEAC of functioning in an "irresponsible fashion." Mahajan said the claims supporting GM mustard were "completely untrue, unsubstantiated and wrongly projected," including that it was "swadeshi" or would improve yields and increase domestic production.

Mahajan said the approval has been pushed through the backdoor. He said the ministry had earlier kept the regulatory clearance for GM mustard in abeyance to seek a review after the SJM raised "key issues" of concern. But the GEAC "predictably" did not take up any review "worth the name." He alleged collusion between the regulators and developers. He appealed to Yadav to "intervene immediately" since the minister has carefully studied the adverse impact of GM crops.

Mahajan said that in 2002, Proagro Seed Company, a subsidiary of Bayer, applied for commercial approval for a similar construct that Professor Pental and his team are now promoting as HT Mustard DMH 11. Bayer's application at that point was turned down after the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) said their field trials did not offer evidence of superior yield. The fact that Bayer owns the patent of the genes used in Pental's mustard has been deliberately concealed from the people of India, the SJM co-convenor said.

Mahajan said that GMO mustard has no yield advantage compared to indigenous hybrids. Mahajan said it was evident "beyond doubt" that the country would be "seriously dependent" on multinational companies for using patents and importing herbicides, causing more foreign exchange outflow. India currently exports food products worth US$ 50 billion, and the non-GM tag on exports helps fetch orders from European nations, where GM is banned, which will stop if GM mustard is introduced in India, he said.

The BKS said if an atmosphere against GM mustard oil is created, it will impact indigenous cultivation of mustard, affecting farmers. It suggested MSP for oilseeds to reduce imports. India imported around 130 lakh tonnes of edible oil during the 2020-21 oil year (November-October).