Environment minister Jairam Ramesh appears gritty about addressing concerns about the regulator — the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) — before the nation can confidently embrace technologies that change the way food is produced. But ABLE-AG, the advocacy arm of the GM industry, says the time-consuming overhaul and lingering uncertainty are hurting projects worth millions of dollars.
“Avoiding conflict of interest and making the process democratic are paramount. States have a legitimate say in agriculture. These should have been done much before though," Ramesh told HT.
New rules bar scientists, who have developed a specific transgenic plant, from evaluating its safety and efficacy as regulators. GEAC members will also have to opt out if a product from an industry to which they are consultants is being evaluated. Read the full report here.
Source: Zia Haq, Hindustan Times, New Delhi.
