SC to hear plea for moratorium on GM crop today

An application seeking a complete moratorium on release of any genetically-modified (GM) crops in the environment till an independent testing facility is set up in India, will be listed for hearing in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

A "review of six years of Bt cotton experience" is sought on the opinion of Dr P M Bhargava, the noted microbiological expert. He says "it is necessary that review must take place during a full moratorium on all GM crops, including Bt cotton" — a view that will be placed before a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan.

Highlighting several lacunas in the present bio-testing system, Aruna Rodrigues, who had earlier filed a PIL, has now moved an application urging the court to issue directions to the Union Government for imposing a ban on import of any GM product.

She has pointed to the extensive communication between Dr P M Bhargava, an international expert in molecular biology, and Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC). GEAC is the sole authority to approve the release of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) under the 1989 Rules.

Following the apex court directions on February 13, 2008, Dr Bhargava, the founder director of Centre for Cell and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, and Dr Swaminathan of Swaminathan Research Foundation, Chennai, were invited to meetings "whenever any application for seeking approval for release of GMO is taken up".

The applicant claims what transpired in the meetings, as also known through the communication between the GEAC and Dr Bhargava, is "a very alarming picture of the manner in which clearances have been given for environmental release of GMOs".

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, counsel for Rodrigues, says a vast majority of bio-safety tests, which are required before such crops are allowed for safe release into the environment, are not being conducted. Whatever tests are being done are being carried out by the applicant company, "which has a clear commercial interest".

... contd.

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