Kevin+Kracker

Perspective of: India


India Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations || The crucial step, however, was to enlist the support of the chief ministers of the state governments—a requirement the seed companies seem to have overlooked under India's federal constitution, agriculture is a “state subject”. States have the authority to regulate the planting or importing of GM crops. ||
 * Frame Element || Information gathered: ||
 * < Characters || Genetically Modified Food (GM)
 * < Setting ||< * There is fear that the Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India Bill, 2013 that was tabled in the Lok Sabha on April 22 would provide a single window clearance for GM crops to enter the country.
 * Environmental groups claimed Bt Brinjal might, through cross-pollination, wipe out thousands of indigenous //brinjal// varieties.
 * To determine whether genetically modified (GM) crops can help improve food security in India we must understand the following: what GM crops are, risks associated with GM crops, the direct and indirect ways in which GM crops relate to food security in India, and whether GM crops can alleviate the true causes of food insecurity. ||
 * < Initiating Event ||< India’s malnutrition rate has hovered around 20% over the past decade and is projected to remain stable through 2022,
 * < Internal Response ||< Arvind Shivakumar, a member of Greenpeace India, an NGO, insisted on compulsory labeling of GM foods. “Some day, I might be eating GM rice without even knowing it because there is no label on it,” he said. “I don’t want such crops to be grown on our soil. It will only push our farmers into more debts.” Shivakumar further pointed at the lack of transparency in the testing methods followed by Monsanto. ||
 * < Goal ||< The use of GM crops would hopefully provide a stable foundation for India's food population ||
 * < Consequence ||< It seems that GM technology is safe for human consumption and could potentially help feed a growing population. However, since production does not seem to be the primary problem, more pressing issues should likely be prioritized in order to addressing food security, namely, the promulgation of the National Bill on Food Security and the improvement of distribution and storage infrastructure. ||
 * < Resolution ||< Policies that could improve the indirect impact of GM cash crops on food security should be strengthened: build capacity to monitor and enforce biosafety regulations; improve the access to objective information of farmers regarding the scope, risks and limitations of GM technology; encourage competition among GM seed providers; and improve credit systems. ||

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