Illegal Bt brinjal, a genetically modified food crop cultivation, was discovered by alert activists recently in the Fatehabad district of Haryana. It appears that other illegal Bt brinjal plots exist in the region. In 2002, regulators faced with the fait accompli of illegal Bt cotton growing in large tracts of Gujarat were forced to approve Bt cotton. As seen in the case of Bt cotton, the target pest (fruit and shoot borer or FSB) will certainly develop resistance to the toxin produced in Bt brinjal. The moratorium continues to be in place — for the obvious reason that Bt brinjal has not been proven to be safe.

Source: dna May 03, 2019 01:40 UTC