I have put my sincere counter-arguments in response to Dr Deepak Pental's Interview appeared in the Business World, dated June 22, 2017. I found many of the things false and silly showing/lying his lack of knowledge of basic agriculture and socio-economics of Indian agriculture. I found he also thinks fragmented like most of scientists and students of mainstream agriculture institutions. These are my personal and objective opinions, without any intention to offend anybody. I would really appreciate and encourage counter-arguments.
Here it goes what Dr Pental spoke and after that my counter-arguments.
http://businessworld.in/article/-If-Government-Has-Guts-Then-Approve-GM-Seeds-/22-06-2017-120584/
How long it took to develop the GM mustard?
It came after 20 years of effort. These years saw more than 40 research publications, and genetic engineering appraisal committee of government disbanding the research. Now, there is opposition against the GM mustard, our efforts are hung. I would rather say, “If government has guts, then approve it”. It is a pity that we spend billions of rupees to import edible oil, this is a direct loss to our farmers.
GM mustard having terminator/GURT technology provide not any alternative rather than forcing farmers to purchase seed and basta every year from the markets monopolized by few seed companies [even Dr Pental do not have any strategy to counter the monopoly of mustard seed like what has happened in Bt cotton]. Traditional plant breeding methods takes 10-12 years [at maximum] to mix any kind of diverse blood [inter and intra-specific] even in self-pollinated plants. Dr Pental is arguing that BBB [barnase-barstar-bar gene] is technology to make hybridization easy and they are having combinations which they would release once GM mustard get approve. First, Mustard is self-pollinated crop and seed rate of mustard is very less [1.5-2.0 kg/acre] so it is very viable to mix the diverse genetic blood through time and tested traditional methods and then release open pollinated varieties [Open pollinated varieties] further in various combinations, simply. Second there is not dearth of traditional technologies to make the hybrids in the mustard family crops. Cauliflower and cabbage as vegetable is grown hybrids mainly. Maximum area under hybrid vegetable cultivation in India is in cabbage followed by cauliflower [more than 90 % now](http://agricoop.nic.in/sites/default/files/edib_2201.pdf) . So, this simply reflects there is not any urgency in case of technology requirement for HYVs hybrid seed production in mustard if genetic base to be widen. Story of cauliflower and cabbage hybrid debunks the argument of superiority and necessity of unsafe and costly BBB technology, after arguments of higher yield has been debunked already. This also tells how GM mustard is scientific fraud and propaganda promoted by industry in name of science and R&D.
Why have you been so critical about it; it takes time for communities to come to a consensus?
Indian Council for Agricultural Research had spent around Rs 300 crore to establish one institute to do similar research in Ranchi, then there is a huge amount of Rs 350 crore spent on the construction of National Bio-technology Institute in Chandigarh. I am unhappy, because if every research has to have the same fate, why government waste money on its progress and future possibilities.
Biotechnology does not mean only to produce GM plant material and handover biodiversity in hands of few corporations. There is lot of application of any technology, it depends how you deploy the technology. Nuclear fission is a basic principle of nuclear technology. It is discretion whether we need to deploy it in form of civil power generation or atomic bomb. So, is the genetic engineering, a simple tool of biotechnology. We very well know the socio-economics and safety of application of nuclear technology in form of atomic bombs.
Dr Pental is implanting false narrative that criticism of GM food means outrightly criticism of biotechnology. Really smart, is not it? Biotechnology in for of MAS (marker assisted selection), immuno-studies, pathogen detection, industry product developments etc etc have a lot of applications. So, do not doubt the basic education, R&D and infrastructure developments by governments. Moreover biotechnology or GM as a technology has not any problem; problem is how and where you apply it. The main problem is that GM seeds are not desired in India for few following reasons.
1. There is not any alternative once GM mustard become what has Bt cotton currently, farmers need to buy seed every year from the market who may be saving, sharing and swapping his seeds earlier.
2. Story of Bt cotton and debt trap driven suicides, and socio-economics of India does not make any sense to deploy more and more fraud technologies when basic infrastructure like market, social and credit support and value-chains are lacking (http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/say-no-to-gm-mustard/article18573107.ece).
3. As per FAO stat top mustard producer grow Non GM mustard and and average productivity is three times than India in general.
4. Bio-safety issues and lack of transparent regulatory mechanism due to conflict of interest etc etc are major issues to be resolved yet. There is no bio-safety data in public domain to look-upon. Matter is under sub-judice in higher judiciary. Parliamentary committee about GM crops and other relevant committees have raised serious questions about bio-safety, procedures of conducting of trails, conflict of interest and deficiencies in regulatory mechanism.
5. There is really dire need to revisit to basic plant genetics books teaching conservation and PGRs (plant genetic resources), and Vavilov's centre of biodiversity. First, India has huge diversity of plants in general and mustard species specifically unlike United States of America (US), Canada, and Australia. Moreover unlike many other countries where single/few species of mustard has been grown we have huge diversity of cultivated mustard. Second, our local farmers have quality local/traditional seeds which are acclimatize to local soils, climate and insect pests, and less resources intensive with.
6. Despite less spray of chemicals than many developed countries we are having high MRL [minimum residue level] in our food crops due to spurious chemicals, lax regulatory mechanism and lack of education about application of dangerous chemicals. It is widely reported, GM crops have been leading the problem of superweeds and superpests [cotton is live example]. So, in this context also there is high chances of more poisoning and contamination of food and looming danger in form of higher level of resistance among weeds and pests against chemicals.
7. GM mustard is Trojan horse, behind it there is hidden design set by kept scientists, pseudo-journalists and controlled information mechanism [led by few seed giants] to hijack the seed-biodiversity and agriculture of India, and food system as a whole. Henry Kissinger, Secretary of State under President Richard Nixon, used to say, ‘Control oil [crude] and you control nations; control food and you control people’. All the seed biodiversity which was earlier in the hands of small, tribal and women farmers' hands is moving ex-situ in form of seed vaults or seed banks. Henry was quite visionary, is not it?
(http://www.vijayvaani.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?aid=4343)
What about other nations?
We should learn from China, if any company invests in China for genetic research they ask them do it with Chinese partnership, they have recently bought Syngenta in a multi-billion dollar deal, now they have all the molecules owned by Syngenta. Suggest me a single company of India who could have done the same for agriculture. We still blame Monsanto for BT cotton issue, but this is how a company do its business, they are also responsible for shareholders.
Modern China has built over reforms set in agriculture as early as after their Independence led by Mao Zedong. This is our common problem; we appraise the beautiful building without even giving thought what kind of foundation makes such building. China has huge resources today and GM technology is in hands of government sector [if I am correct]. Education, R&D and information is very much in controlled in context to techno-nationalism and econo-nationalism. Do we have techno-nationalism and econo-nationalism in India like China, Germany, Japan, and Holland?
China does not feed GM food to their army because GM food crops are not much healthy, nutritious or productive in nature. Our age-old philosophies says Jaisa aan vaisa man, our physical bodies are nothing but accumulation of food, very part of Mother Earth. We have been killing the soil for greed and so is the consciousness dying. Same is the case with GM food. GM food comes from impotent, infertile, molecularly disturbed plants, so it affects human and other life forms' balance.
Syngenta is Chinese PSU now, we did not able to make such PSUs because our elite scientists, politicians, bureaucrats are playing along with their self-motivated interests unlike German, Japanese, Chinese, Dutch, Israeli etc etc.
What is your opinion about the recommendations of Swaminathan commission?
The best part of that report was the critical assessment of farmers’ profit, which was to be one and half times of his investment as recommended in report. I personally think, Swaminathan commission report lacks the part of technology transfer to farmers. Technology transfer and improvement can do changes, the same way it has done to information technology.
For example, what is the use of computer and ITC [information technology and communication] applications if there is not electricity? It is like a stupid engineer asking farmer to buy computer as whole world is connected through this box, but the farmer is not having power to watch television set even.
Most of our scientists lack common sense and capacity to connect the dots. Even Steve Jobs has said 'Connect the dots looking backwards to look forward'. What is the use of technology and high yields when we do not have basic infrastructure in form integrated markets, value-chains, irrigation and procurement? We are having bumper crops of edible oils and pulses last rabi season [even government leveraged it while demonetization], and see what happened throughout the country in last few days. If scientists were asked failing of Bt cotton they shift the blame to policies and governments and vice-versa. So, we cannot afford the fragmented thinking and approach anymore. Most of the scientists even do not able to recognize the basic crops apart from their relevant field crops and are preaching technologies can better serve the Indian agriculture. Bullshit.
What should government do for farmers’?
Government should allow retails to reach farmers. We normally witness similar agricultural produce on a specific zone; if retails get involved they will pick it from farmers, giving them relief from a mountain task of bearing transportation expenses. I do not want to comment on the functioning of Food Corporation of India. Government can’t do everything on its own.
You really need to speak out and expose the functioning of FCI and lack of basic infrastructure, Dr Pental. This is what I feel; there is lack of integration among various stakeholders. Some hidden designs and over specialization has been ruling and dividing the minds of scientist, intellectuals, policy formulators and governments. Scientists and concerned people really need to speak about the basic infrastructure problems and policies which are prime reason for not flowering of Indian agriculture.
Your views on farmer suicides?
I have been involved with academics for a long time, there is no shortage of psychology experts in universities. Government must fund universities for field research, if experts visit farmers, they will counsel them and I find it more helpful. As far as loan repayments are concerned, every banker will follow poor farmers as they are easy to catch. None catches the big fish.
Amusing, we have fragmented and destroyed the natural social support mechanism exiting earlier. What the heck, psychologists and researchers would do, would they console and hugs the farmers? As Dr MS Swaminathan said ' what is the use of giving cow to a family as compensation who has lost his bread-winner, without making arrangement of fodder, ultimately cow needs fodder to survive. So, the farmer does not need bullshit anymore, he only needs basic infrastructure and support.
When whole system of traditional support system in form of joint families, village as a single family, counseling by near and dear ones etc etc has been diluting what the heck psychologists would do? There is dire need to revive the social harmony, basic infrastructure, credit infrastructure, decentralization, local agriculture, traditional knowledge base and local seeds to resuscitate Indian agriculture. Most important we need to make our pseudo-scientist social scientist first and make them to visit farmers' fields rather than preaching the bullshit from the glass labs. Farms and farmers are not factory and workers to produce food. They have dignity, self-respect and rich-traditional knowledge which need mutual respect.
Last but not least stop implanting false narratives and wrong information. No disputes, we are importing edible oil worth of $10 billion (roughly 67,000 cr). But major share is of oil palm and soybean oil. WE are self-sufficient in mustard oil almost (http://agricoop.nic.in/sites/default/files/edib_2201.pdf). Then why implanting the false narrative that GM mustard would make India edible oil sufficient. Low import duties [please read and connect the dots why after flowering of yellow revolution we are again importing 60 percent of edible oils now?] and lack of policy vision is main reason for unbalance Indian agricultural basket. Do not doubt the will and courage of Indian farmers. Just in short time-frames they made nation self-sufficient in many food commodities. Green revolution, white revolution, yellow revolution etc etc are live example to be read. It is governments, scientists and policy makers who need enlightenment and will to atleast provide basic infrastructure and support to our resilient farmers.
PFA link to article "Challenging the narrative of GM mustard", debunking the pseudo-narratives in context to going on GM mustard controversy.
http://www.vijayvaani.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?aid=4343
(Views are personal and written in individual capacity)
Regards
vipeshgarg@gmail.com
P.S. Agriculture is natural, pure, aesthetic and spiritual profession. Please help to integrate it rather than fragmentation.
