-The Tribune New Delhi: Amid the central government’s claim of 28 per cent higher yield of GM mustard in the Rajya Sabha, former government scientists and agriculture experts have accused the government of fiddling with GM DMH -11 data. The government is said to have claimed that there is 28 per cent higher yield of GM mustard than that of other varieties. Dr SE Pawar, who has worked at nuclear agriculture &...

-The Hindu “It would have been better if seed production trials take place in a controlled rather than in an open environment so as to assess various risks before conducting open field trials,” read a statement by the AIPSN. Following the go-ahead for production and field testing of hybrid seeds of genetically modified (GM) mustard, All-India Peoples Science Network (AIPSN) has demanded that the open field tests, if any, be conducted with...

-The Tribune They view the release of the GM crop as a ‘dangerous’ exercise New Delhi: After farmers and environmentalists, medical professionals are the next to oppose the environmental clearance of the genetically-modified (GM) GM mustard – DMH 11. The medical professionals have claimed that their opposition to the GM crop has scientific underpinning. Demanding a complete ban, as many as 111 specialist doctors in the country have urged PM Modi to immediately ‘nullify’...

-The Indian Express Area under ‘unapproved’ herbicide-tolerant hybrids likely to fall this year Nagpur: Last year, almost 35 lakh packets of genetically modified (GM) cotton seeds, incorporating unapproved ‘herbicide-tolerance’ or HT technology, were bought and planted by farmers across India. But this time round, state governments seem better prepared to curb this illegal cultivation, even as sowing of cotton is over in northwest India and is about to commence in the...

-The Financial Express The agriculture ministry is not reconciled to the grip which Monsanto has on the Indian cottonseed industry owing to the immense preference for its patented, genetically-modified (GM) bollworm-resistance traits. On May 16, Additional Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta intervened in a dispute between Monsanto and its biggest (now divorced) sub-licensee, Hyderabad-based Nuziveedu Seeds. He made written submissions on behalf of the government, a week after hearings on the matter had...