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New Delhi, Feb 7 () Few incidence of suspected open cultivation of banned Bt brinjal and aherbicide-tolerant (HT) variety of cotton were reported in five states, including Maharashtra and Gujarat, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said in Parliament on Friday. Bt cotton is the only Genetically Modified (GM) crop approved in 2002 by the government for commercial farming in the country and, therefore, cultivation of other unapproved GM crops are banned in India, he added. In his written reply to the Rajya Sabha, the Minister said "Few incidences of suspected open cultivation of Bt brinjal and HT cotton were reported in Maharashtra, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh." The Agriculture Ministry has issued advisories to states to take appropriate necessary action to curb and control the spread of Bt. brinjal and HT cotton, he said. "State governments have given the directions to all district administration to take necessary legal steps to curb the production and selling of illegal GM crops for farming," he added. LUX LUX MRMR

Suspected cultivation of banned Bt brinjal, HT cotton in some states: Minister

New Delhi, Mar 17 () The Centre is considering writing off trait value charged from farmers for Bollgard-II variety of Bt cotton to ensure the seeds are available to farmers at affordable prices, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said in Parliament on Tuesday. Since 2015, the government has been fixing a maximum sale price for Bt cotton every year considering the seed value, recurring royalty (trait value), trade margins and others. The price of Bollgard-II (BG-II) cotton seed in 2019 was fixed at Rs 730 per packet including Rs 20 as trait value. Asked if the government is intending to write off trait value charged from farmers for BG-II, the minister said: "Yes Sir, in order to ensure the availability of the Bt cotton seed to farmers at fair, reasonable and affordable prices and curtail the charging of exorbitant price." In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, the minister also said although industry body NSAI says BG-II has become ineffective against pink bollworm, government research body ICAR believes the technology is still good and is effective against American bollworm and spotted bollworm. For this reason, farmers are cultivating Bt cotton in more than 87 per cent of cotton area. Singh said "no seed firm has informed" that Bollgard-II or BG-II has proven to be ineffective in the last season as the pink bollworm has developed resistance to the technology. Bt cotton is the only Genetically Modified (GM) crop allowed for commercial cultivation in the country. There is a moratorium on Bt brinjal. LUX LUX ANUANU

Govt to write off trait value charged from farmers for Bt cotton Bollgard-II: Agri Min

Following the Delhi High Court’s <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/without-its-gm-cotton-patents-monsanto-may-stop-doing-business-in-india/articleshow/63731936.cms">rejection of Monsanto’s patent rights</a> in April, the sale of illegal or unapproved <keyword id="6359181" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="cotton">cotton</keyword> seeds on the black market in India has continued unabated amid a dearth of new variants from established seed producers. Concurrently, since old genetically modified variants, like <keyword id="6419807" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="monsanto">Monsanto</keyword>’s Bollgard II, aren’t as effective since pests develop immunities to them, they are met with little to no demand. <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Politics/rceGzV27jdJ81j6gx3IfPM/Illegal-cotton-seeds-sales-surge-in-Maharashtra-other-state.html">Around 6 million packets</a> of unapproved herbicide-resistant (HT) cotton seeds will reportedly be sold ahead of the 2018 kharif season, up from 3.5 million last year, according to Livemint. Most of these seeds are said to be manufactured in Gujarat, and are sold in the state, and also transported to Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The rise in the sale of <keyword id="6621335" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="illegal-seeds">illegal seeds</keyword> has largely been caused by the failure of regulator, the <keyword id="151298" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="ministry-of-environment">Ministry of Environment</keyword>’s genetic engineering appraisal committee (GEAC), to clamp down on the sales. The GEAC is said to be waiting on a report from a taskforce set up by the Prime Minister’s office - the Field Inspection and Scientific Evaluation Committee (FISEC). The taskforce has been deliberating on the problem of the sale and cultivation of illegal seeds, since its inception in October 2017. Its draft recommendations include the raiding of the offices of companies that stockpile these illegal seeds as well as a ban on the sale of glyphosate - a herbicide that is used in tandem with HT cotton seeds. A need to keep farmers happy? Despite being well above the price of approved <keyword id="80549" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="BT-Cotton">BT cotton</keyword> seeds, farmers are buying illegal HT cotton seeds in droves because there’s a shortage in the supply of new and approved variants. Given that there’s less than a year to go to national elections and that farmers are an important vote bloc, the government likely thinks its a politically astute move to not crack down on sales of these seeds in the absence of other alternatives. However, given that these seeds are illegal, which makes their quality questionable, farmers aren’t offered any protection or guarantees in the event that they fail. This makes it even more urgent for the Indian government to crack down on the sales of illegal seeds, for state government will likely be left too foot the bill if these farmers’ cotton harvests prove to be underwhelming. By the time that the FISEC report is completed, the sales cycle for the kharif season will likely be over. Looking ahead to 2019, the Indian government can crack down on the sale of illegal seeds but it will need to incentivise seed producers to sell new variants and subsequently fast-track the approvals of these seeds. Otherwise, history will repeat itself again next year.

Illegal cotton seed sales are thriving in India, putting farmers at risk

<ul><li><keyword id="6419807" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="monsanto">Monsanto</keyword>’s patents on two cotton variants, Bollgard and Bollgard II, were found to be unenforceable under India’s Patents Act. </li><li>The American biotechnology giant has been locked in a three-year legal feud with its Indian licensee, Nuziveedu Seeds, over unpaid royalties. </li><li>An arm of India’s <keyword id="6355165" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="agriculture">agriculture</keyword> ministry will now determine the royalty rate for Monsanto’s seeds- a move that could scare off other foreign companies. </li></ul> The Delhi High Court, on March 11th, ruled that Monsanto’s patents on two genetically modified (GM) seed varieties of cotton - Bollgard and Bollgard II - could not be enforced, thereby concluding a three-year legal feud between Monsanto and its Indian licensee, Nuziveedu Seeds, over unpaid royalties. The ruling effectively terminates the American biotechnology giant’s intellectual property rights to <keyword id="80549" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="BT-Cotton">Bt cotton</keyword> technology in India. The court explained that under India’s Patents Act of 1970, plant varieties and seeds cannot be patented, and that royalties or “trait fees” on Monsanto’s cotton seeds, which are modified to increase resistance to the bollworm pest, would instead be determined by the Protection of Plant Varieties and <keyword id="45092" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="farmers">Farmers</keyword>’ Rights Authority (PPVFRA), an agency of the ministry of agriculture. This is in line with the government’s rationale that while Monsanto has patent rights to the Bt cotton gene, once it is introduced into a plant seed, the product becomes subject to the Plant Varieties Act instead of the Patent Act. Despite the cancellation of a licensing agreement with Monsanto in late 2015 over the alleged non-payment of royalties, Nuziveedu Seeds and its subsidiaries had continued to sell Bt cotton seeds. However, in a <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/AcYyKVDiJapVuSfQ6zvh2L/Delhi-HC-Monsanto-termination-of-Nuziveedu-Seeds-sublicenc.html">separate case last year</a>, the Delhi court ruled that Monsanto’s termination of the agreement was illegal since it had violated its contractual obligations by charging a royalty fee that was higher than that stipulated by the government. With the latest ruling, Monsanto’s claims against Nuziveedu for unpaid royalties have been waived because its patents are invalid. It will now have to settle for the rates decided by the government. A huge setback This is a significant blow for Monsanto, the world’s largest seed producer, as it currently licenses its seeds to nearly 50 domestic companies through its local joint venture with Mahyco Seeds Ltd. It could, in all probability, lead to the company’s complete exit from India. In March 2016, the government slashed royalty fees on Bt Cotton by 74% to ₹43 per packet, and reduced the maximum sale price of these seeds to ₹800 for a 450 gram packet, from as much as ₹1000 earlier.The move followed pressure from the National Seed Association of India (NSAI), an industry body, that argued that the prices were too high and that the seeds weren’t as effective at resisting the bollworm as originally promised. In response, Monsanto said it would have to reconsider bringing new seed technologies to India and rethink its investments in R&amp;D. It made good on this threat <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/Monsanto-stops-release-of-new-Bt-cotton-tech/article14589157.ece">the following August</a> by stalling the release of a newer cotton strain. It also <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/monsanto-exits-cotton-seeds-business-in-india/articleshow/60415874.cms">sold off its cotton seeds business</a> in India in September 2017 to Tierra Agrotech, a seed producer based in Hyderabad. Monsanto is a company everyone loves to hate - with good reason. It first introduced its GM technology in India in 1995, promising to transform farmers’ livelihoods and maximise yields. In the ensuing decades, the company’s Bt cotton seeds completely took over India’s cotton cultivation. While yields have increased significantly, Monsanto has long been accused of overcharging farmers for its seeds, especially given the fact that their ability to resist pests diminishes with time. The high cost of seeds and royalties left thousands of farmers in a vicious cycle of debt, which inevitably led to many suicides when crops failed. As a result, the government was forced to start regulating Bt cotton prices in 2006. Adverse effects Hence, the Delhi High Court’s ruling can be seen as a moral reckoning on Monsanto. But it also has wider implications. Yes, it will reduce prices for farmers, given that seed licensing companies pass on the royalty costs to them, but it could prove to be the death knell for <keyword id="94495" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Innovation">innovation</keyword> in the agriculture sector - something that will hurt farmers in the long run. In essence, Indian seed producers are being allowed to distribute products enhanced by foreign technologies without having to pay sufficient licensing fees. Last month, the government cut royalty fees again, to ₹39, and set the maximum price of cotton seeds at ₹740 for the next sowing season. High-yielding varieties have helped India become one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of cotton. If patent and pricing rights aren’t adequately protected, a host of companies will be discouraged from selling and investing in the research and development of genetically modified seeds in India. Ever since Monsanto stopped introducing new seed variants in 2016, the trade in illegally-produced copies of genetically-modified seeds <a href="http://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/monsanto-vs-illegal-seeds-illegal-ones-selling-at-1-7x-show-farmers-value-technology/1077508/">has flourished</a>, owing to unmet demand from farmers. As things stand, Monsanto has been given three months to register its Bt cotton seeds under India’s Plant Varieties Act, which will make it eligible to receive the trait fee that is determined by the PPVFRA. However, it will cede all rights to the genetic material in the seeds. Alternatively, the company could challenge the Delhi High Court’s ruling in the Supreme Court. Either way, yesterday’s ruling and the continued clampdown on trait fees would have already made other companies wary of making further investments in India, lest they be treated like Monsanto. Image source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paxta11.jpg" data-type="tilCustomLink">Wikipedia/ CC BY-SA 4.0/ S_Aziz123</a>

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Suspected cultivation of banned Bt brinjal, HT cotton in some states: Minister

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Govt to write off trait value charged from farmers for Bt cotton Bollgard-II: Agri Min

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Illegal cotton seed sales are thriving in India, putting farmers at risk

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Without its GM cotton patents, Monsanto may stop doing business in India

Dilsher Dhillon

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