India needs GM crops, says Jairam Ramesh

The country needs genetically- modified crops but there is no "great urgency" for GM foods, Union Minister of State for Environment Jairam Ramesh said today.
"I draw a fundamental distinction between GM foods and GM crops. I do not see a great urgency for Bt. Brinjal and I see a very strong case for Bt. Cotton. Country needs GM crops; no great urgency for GM foods," Ramesh told reporters here.

He said Bt. Cotton has been successful in some states such as Gujarat but in some others, it created a lot of problems, adding, he is not against the idea of a comprehensive assessment from the experience of Bt. Cotton.

Part of the problem in Bt. Cotton was that India did not have an indigenous variety of Bt. Cotton but in the last few days the Central Institute of Cotton Research in Nagpur has introduced a local variety of Bt. Cotton that would substantially change the environment as far as Bt. Cotton is concerned.

"I believe that there is a very strong case to be made for a unified, independent, science-based national biotechnology regulatory regime which will do a comprehensive risk assessment for all GM technologies before they are introduced," the minister said.

On the flow of GM foods into India from overseas, he said as Minister of State for Commerce previously, he had requested the then Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss to make labelling of GM products compulsory. "I will stick to this position." "Any product coming from anywhere containing GM characteristics.. There must be compulsory labelling so that consumers are made aware of what they are buying," he said. PTI