02/November/21

 

There is silence in the GM Bt cotton fields of Punjab and Haryana where farmers are uprooting plants after having sprayed multiple rounds of pesticides in vain. The pink bollworm has ravaged cotton crops in the country’s north. In 2017, a similar devastation took place in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra that triggered the debate on the sustainability of GM cotton. Many farmers have complained of up to 100% crop loss due to the pink bollworm attack. It has also led to increased deaths by suicide among farmers in Punjab’s Malwa region. Farmers have expressed doubt that they were sold genuine Bt seeds. But a plant breeder from Punjab Agri University says they tested some of the seed where there was infestation and it was genuine Bt. The Wire

 

 

Anti-GMO campaigners have replied to a statement from the Director-General, National Biosafety Management (NBMA), Dr Rufus Ebegba who referred to the activists as terrorists for the campaign against the approval of the TELA Maize into the country. The rejoinder by the groups spoke of their "utter shock and disbelief" at Ebegba's words. They write, "It may be a good time to critically examine the Agency [NBMA] to find out if their spate of approvals as well as wilful blindness to several unauthorised imported GM products do not constitute acts of terrorism against an unsuspecting nation." The NBMA has approved a GM supposedly drought-tolerant maize that was rejected by the South African authorities due to the absence of proof of efficacy. Nigerian Current

 

 

A tax credit for farmers who no longer use glyphosate-based herbicides has come into force in France. Farms that give up glyphosate in 2021 will each get a lump sum of 2,500 euros ($2,900; £2,124). The tax credit also applies to arboriculture and viticulture. Sud Ouest (French text)