COMMENTARY
INTERVIEWS
SPECIALS
CHAT
ARCHIVES

Monsanto to develop and market high-yielding, worm-resistant cotton gene in India

Mahyco Monsanto Biotech (India) Private Limited managing director Dr M D Sharma said in Bangalore on Wednesday that that there was nothing secretive about using biotechnology to help farmers protect their crops, use less insecticide and increase yields.

He said MMB would develop and market bollgard gene for cotton growers. Field trials were on in over 40 places including Bellary, Raichur, Davangere and Dharwad districts. Bollgard was a result of totally new technology and it would help farmers to destroy the bollworm and reduce spraying while ensuring improved yield to an extent of nearly 25 per cent.

Bollgard was effective only against lepidopteran pests and would not harm predators and parasites.

The test launch would be done in 1999, provided the Union government approved the technology. Even the toxicological studies, as suggested by the Centre, were taken up and it had revealed that there was nothing abnormal between the transgenic and non-transgenic seeds. The data on field trials were being compiled and would be ready in another ten days, he added.

He said the technology was a tremendous success in the US. However, a batch of seeds was withdrawn from distribution for not meeting the standards.

Dr Sharma said introduction of bollgard gene would ultimately benefit the cotton growers in India and the company was ready for a debate on the issue. It had already proved successful in some countries and was not being dumped unnecessarily in India, he clarified.

Dr Manjunath, an expert working with Monsanto, felt the appointment of an experts panel to study the laboratory activities of the company was a welcome sign as it would reveal the truth and allay fears.

He said the terminator technology test was very simple and the seed in this category would not germinate. Anyone could conduct this test and it did not require any sophisticated laboratory.

M S Sankrikoppa and Arumugam Mudaliar, on whose lands the test trials were being held, felt the bollgard gene has given anticipated results.

UNI

Business news