CM Chandrababu Naidu writes to centre against GM mustard

NEW DELHI : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has written to the Centre against its nod to commercialise genetically modified (GM) mustard and said that concerns of states should be given due importance during the decision-making as agriculture is a State issue.

Andhra Pradesh is the tenth State to oppose GM mustard. Despite being an important NDA ally, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government said that several farmer unions in the State have approached it opposing the commercialisation. Bihar, Delhi, Kerala, TN, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Odisha have already expressed their reservations on the issue.

As this is the first GM food crop that has reached this stage after Bt Brinjal, we would like to share our serious concerns about GM mustard. This has been a subject of serious discussion in the State, and several farmer unions have approached us with objections. The fact that the biosafety data of the three GM mustard lines has not been published and that adequate time has not been given for public response has been a matter of concern, said Naidu in his August 10 letter to Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan.

Requesting the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change not to approve GM mustard for commercialisation. Naidu said, “Further, we would like to state that it is not a practical approach to say that even after approval by the Government of India, each State can decide whether to allow the cultivation of the GM crop because once commercialisation is allowed it would be very difficult for State governments to regulate whether the seed is used in their states.’’

The State has undertaken a large programme to develop natural farming. “We believe that this is the best way forward for ensuring better incomes for farmers as well as sustaining soil fertility, crop diversity and cattle wealth. The reality is that genetically modified crops and organic farming cannot be compatible with each other. Allowing GM crops will seriously affect India’s status as a potential giant in organic food production,” said Naidu. The State has expressed serious reservations over field trials of GM crops.