FOCUS ON ASIA
http://www.gmwatch.org/asia.asp

Gujarat's Chief Minister is keen to claim personal responsibility for the legalisation of Bt cotton in India:

"Soon after I was elected chief minister (in October 2001), I received a letter from Union Ministry of Environment and Forests asking me to take measures against those farmers of the state who had used BT-cotton [illegally].

"But I was convinced of the benefits of the genetically modified seeds. I replied that you would first have to arrest me. Later, the ministry permitted the use of BT-cotton," he said. (item 1)

Compare and contrast the Chief Minister's proud boast with the fate of those farmers who benefitted from the GM cotton lagalisation that he claims to have brought about:

"The 55,000 farmers who sowed [GM] cotton seed on over 42,000 hectares across the country last year were an unhappy lot. This was corroborated by studies conducted by the governments of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, as also by independent agencies. Following widespread complaints of failure of Bt cotton in Madhya Pradesh early last year, the GEAC commissioned a seven-member team of scientists to evaluate the performance of the crop. The study showed that Bt cotton failed in Madhya Pradesh 'due to wilting and large-scale drying of the crop at the peak bolling stage, accompanied by leaf-dropping and shedding, as also forced bursting of immaculate bolls'. According to the study, non-Bt plants performed much better." (item 2)

Gujarat's Chief Minister could hardly be unaware of the extent of the problems experienced by farmers, not least those in his own State. To quote again from India's National Magazine, Frontline:

"A six-member panel set up by the Gujarat government under S.K. Sangami Joint Director, Agriculture (Oilseeds), to evaluate the performance of Bt cotton in the State said that 'it is unfit for cultivation and should be banned in the State'."

If it seems surprising that this is the legacy the Chief Minister wishes to claim, then note how in the article "BT" is used interchangeably for the GM cotton and as an acronym for the word "biotech", ie he appears not even to understand that Bt (as in "Bt cotton") is an acronym for "Bacillus thuringiensis".

But we shouldn't be too hard on the Chief Minister and his "BT" love affair. He is far from alone in his foolish doting:

"This notion that you lure biotech to your community to save its economy is laughable. This is a bad-idea virus that has swept through governors, mayors and economic development officials." - Joseph Cortright, economist who co-wrote a report on the subject
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=3772

1.Gujarat to consider venture capital for biotech industry
2.Bt cotton, again
3.A lesson from the field
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1.Business News, India: Gujarat to consider venture capital for biotech industry
Indo-Asian News Service, 11-September-2004
http://athens-olympics-2004.newkerala.com/?action=fullnews&id=30494

Ahmedabad: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Friday promised the biotech (BT) industry the same facilities as were provided to the information technology (IT) sector.

"For me, IT stands for India today and BT for Bharat tomorrow," Modi told the inaugural session of BioGujarat, a two-day national exposition and conference on the BT industry organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). "We will treat both the sectors equally," the chief minister added.

He said the Gujarat government was considering venture capital for the biotech entrepreneurs. "I am also considering some kind of insurance scheme to provide some surety and benefits to researchers." Modi said the state government was creating appropriate infrastructure for patents, a crucial factor for the industry, but did not elaborate on how it intended to provide the same

The chief minister said marine biotech was another area where Gujarat offered thanks to its coastline of 1,600 kilometres that is among the longest in India.

"I have been trying to get central government's sanction for a marine biotech research institute at any point on the shoreline," he said, adding he had successfully changed the popular mindset about the BT sector.

"Soon after I was elected chief minister (in October 2001), I received a letter from Union Ministry of Environment and Forests asking me to take measures against those farmers of the state who had used BT-cotton.

"But I was convinced of the benefits of the genetically modified seeds. I replied that you would first have to arrest me. Later, the ministry permitted the use of BT-cotton," he said.

He said a plan to set up a BT park in Vadodara, 110 km from here, was under active consideration.

"You can't create biotech parks simply by investing money. We will extend the potential of the M.S. University (in Vadodara) into the proposed park and make it a model of industry-academia partnership," he said.

Sector experts present on the occasion outlined measures that would help the state reap benefits of the BT revolution.
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2.Bt cotton, again
By ASHA KRISHNAKUMAR
http://www.freeindiamedia.com/agriculture/17_may_04_agri.htm

The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee approves a fourth Bt cotton variety for commercial cultivation even as crops raised earlier using other varieties have been disappointing.

THE Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), India's regulatory authority for transgenic products, has approved yet another transgenic Bt cotton, RCH 2, for commercial cultivation in the central and southern parts of the country.

A Bt cotton crop.

Developed by Rassi Seeds, a sub-licensee of the American multinational Monsanto, RCH 2 is the fourth Bt cotton seed variety to be released for commercial cultivation. The varieties Bt Mech 12, Bt Mech 162 and Bt Mech 184, all developed by Monsanto in collaboration with the Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (Mahyco), its Indian partner, were approved by the GEAC in March 2002.

Said GEAC Chairperson Bina Chotray: "We have given conditional approval for the commercial cultivation of the Bt cotton seed RCH 2 in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for three years. As in the case of the other three varieties of Bt cotton approved earlier, the performance of RCH 2 will be reviewed within three years for further any extension of the approval."

On April 22, the GEAC, which functions under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, approved large-scale field trials and production of seeds of 12 varieties of Bt cotton hybrids developed by Raasi Seeds, Ankur Seeds, (another sub-licensee of Monsanto, and Mahyco). These Bt cotton hybrids contain the Bt cry 1 ac gene developed by Monsanto.

Raasi Seeds has been allowed to conduct trials of RCH 118 Bt and RCH 559 Bt in Central India, RCH 368 Bt in South India and RCH 317 Bt in North India. Ankur Seeds has been allowed to conduct trials of Ankur 651 Bt and Ankur 2534 Bt in North