The corruption used to illegally introduce Bt cotton in India is being repeated with GM mustard. Farmers and biodiversity are being sacrificed in the name of Monsanto's profit.
The poison cartel, the six multinationals producing pesticides and GMOs that hold the world's seeds in their hands, is corrupting our governments, our regulatory agencies and some of our scientists in order to promote their genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which are dangerous and do not work, and to claim patents and royalties on the basis of scientific fraud.
Monsanto's attempts to corrupt regulatory agencies and its attacks on science are becoming more and more apparent every day. The Monsanto papers, made public after their discovery in a legal action against Monsanto brought by eleven cancer victims, show not only that Monsanto's products (Roundup and Roundup Ready crops) are carcinogenic, but also that the company attacked the World Health Organization (WHO) and the scientists who proved the link with cancer.
The illegal introduction of GMOs in India began on 10 March 1995, when Mahyco (Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company) imported 10 grams of Monsanto's Bt cotton seeds without approval from the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (Geac), which is the only body that can grant permission to import genetically modified substances (in this case, seeds). In 1998, Monsanto struck an exclusive deal with Mahyco and created a joint venture to introduce GM cotton in India.
So in 1998 Monsanto and Mahyco illegally began field trials for Bt cotton in 40 areas, and I myself had to bring a legal action (Writ Petition number 71 of 1999) against them and against the government in order to uphold our biosafety laws.
In March 2002, the Ministry of Environment admitted before the Supreme Court that Bt cotton carries significant risks. In our case we repeated our prayer: that no GMO, including Bt cotton, should be permitted without a rigorous, independent regulatory process. We also called for an investigation into how Bt cotton had spread illegally in India, and for farmers to be compensated.
Yet, just days after Bt cotton had been declared dangerous by the Geac, it was declared safe in Monsanto's case. Thus, Monsanto obtained permission to introduce Bt Bollgard I cotton. This is a shameless demonstration of corruption. Farmers and our biodiversity were sacrificed in the name of Monsanto's profits.
Our studies have shown that almost 60 per cent of organisms beneficial to the soil have been killed by the Bt toxin in cotton fields in Vidarbha, in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. On Bt cotton plants there are no longer any pollinating insects and the honey industry in these areas has collapsed. Even at the trial stage it was clear that Bt cotton does not work as a technology against pests. In fact, new pests have emerged and the cotton aphid has become resistant.
The main justification for the genetic engineering of the Bt toxin into crops is that it would reduce insecticide use. A Monsanto leaflet showed an image of some aphids with the caption: "You will see these on your cotton but it is normal, do not spray pesticides." However, new pests have emerged, cotton aphids have become resistant and farmers are using more pesticides than ever.
Monsanto deceived farmers and the government failed to regulate it in accordance with biosafety laws. The government's failure to regulate GMOs and the courts' failure to implement the laws have led to thousands of farmer suicides.
Monsanto used the failure of its own technology as an excuse to sell Bollgard II GM cotton at higher prices and with greater (illegal) royalties. Monsanto cannot, in fact, legally collect royalties on seeds in India because Indian patent laws do not recognise seeds, plants and animals as "inventions".
When the government passed a seed price control measure, Monsanto took legal action against the government, which was only closed after our intervention. Monsanto is now challenging Article 3 of our patent law at the Supreme Court of Delhi, where I have had to intervene once again. Monsanto controls 95 per cent of the cotton seed sector and when the competition commission began an investigation into the monopoly, it even took the commission to court.
The corruption we witnessed with Bt cotton at the expense of farmers and the environment is about to be repeated with GM mustard. GM mustard is the product of genetic transformation and the introduction of genes from unrelated organisms. The main scientific fraud in the promotion of GM mustard is the denial of its herbicide resistance, despite the fact that it contains the Bar gene, which produces the Pat protein (Phosphynothricin acetyltransferase) that confers resistance to the herbicide Basta (glufosinate ammonium).
Another scientific deception is the claim that GM mustard carries no risk of genetic contamination through pollination, even though it is a crop prone to cross-pollination.
Mustard is our food, our culture. We eat its leaves in sarson da saag, its seeds as a condiment, its oil in cooking and in medicine. Mustard is food for both people and animals. Yet no tests have been carried out. An analysis states — without any scientific basis — that GM mustard "presents no risk of side effects on the health and safety of people and animals." No tests have been conducted on any food in the Indian diet. Yet it is claimed to be safe. The absence of tests is not proof of safety.
Promoting a variety of mustard that has herbicide-resistance characteristics violates the recommendations of the Supreme Court's technical committee, which stated that no herbicide-tolerant GMO and no GM crop of which India is a centre of diversity should be authorised. This is to protect our biodiversity, which is an obligation under the law.
Most of the states that grow mustard have stated that they will not authorise GM mustard. Ignoring the rights of states to make sovereign decisions on GMOs is a violation of the constitution and the regulatory framework on biodiversity. The tragic lesson of Bt cotton should help us avoid the destruction of our farmers' lives and our natural heritage. The integrity of science, our sovereignty, our biodiversity and our democracy is at risk in the cases of Bt cotton and GM mustard. Twenty years of political corruption and scientific fraud are enough.
Translated by Camilla Soldati