The Telegraph Over 60 scientists have signed a statement accusing the Indian Council of Agriculture Research of trying to ‘silence the voices’ of public sector scientists Sections of scientists on Monday asked India’s apex agricultural research agency to revoke what they described as a “gag order” intended to prevent former government researchers from articulating concerns about genetically modified mustard. Over 60 scientists have signed a statement accusing the Indian Council of Agriculture...
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New drought monitoring tool gives hope of better preparation, mitigation at farmer level -Shagun
-Down to Earth State-level workshops will be conducted to help users interpret data from the system A new satellite-based drought-monitoring tool will be able to indicate the presence of drought and its level of severity, providing authorities the maximum possible lead time to put mitigation strategies into place in India and across South Asia. In India, the South Asia Drought Monitoring System (SADMS) was developed by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and...
More »SC orders status quo on approval to GM mustard
-Hindustan Times The Supreme Court on Thursday sought the Centre’s response to an application seeking moratorium on the release of genetically modified (GM) mustard even as the Centre assured there will be no “precipitative action” from its end till November 10, the next date of hearing. The Supreme Court on Thursday sought the Centre’s response to an application seeking moratorium on the release of genetically modified (GM) mustard even as the Centre...
More »Why GM mustard faces vocal opposition despite regulator nod -Amarnath K Menon
-India Today Once the government gives final approval, it will be another three years before farmers can begin commercial cultivation using GM mustard seeds Approval for the environmental release of genetically modified (GM) mustard—Dhara Mustard Hybrid-11 (DMH-11)—across India has not come a day too soon. The GM crops regulator, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), had cleared GM mustard in 2017 but the Indian government raised questions and asked for more studies,...
More »Top farm scientists body rejects zero budget natural farming -Harish Damodaran and Parthasarathi Biswas
-The Indian Express This comes even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing the 14th Conference of Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification on Monday, mentioned that “we are focusing on ZBNF”. India’s premier academic body of agricultural scientists has hit out at Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF), terming it as an “unproven” technology bringing no incremental value gain to either farmers or consumers. “The government should not needlessly invest capital...
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