मोइन मोइन हिन्दी विकी – पाइथन साफ्टवेयर में हिन्दी भाषी तबके के लिए एक आधुनिक सरल व मुफ्त सेवा – क्या आप ग्रामीण तबके के हिन्दी भाषी हैं ?

क्या यही एक कारण है जिसकी वजह से पतलून पहनने वाले, व फर्राटे की अँग्रेज़ी बोलने वाले, आपको पछाड़ रहे हैं, अथवा आपको अपने हक से वंचित रखे हैं ?

- यह न समझें कि हिन्दी भाषी होने का अर्थ पिछडे होना है

- हिन्दी पाइथन सीखें व सिखाएँ -

- अौर अपने कार्य पर तत्परता से लग जाएँ

Why are Americans insisting on feeding reluctant Indian consumers with unlabelled GM food ?

Regulation and Standards, not Double Standards, please - Bhaskar Goswami 
India should take US-backed WTO attempts to thrust GM foods on us with a pinch of salt 

If things do not work your way, seek influence of a heavy weight. This is exactly what the
United States is trying to do. With India not accepting genetically modified (GM) foods, the
US is trying to rope in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to exert pressure. Knowing that India has not violated any WTO norms, the US is still trying to use theGeneva route to open the Indian market to GM foods. It is opposingIndia’s efforts to set standards for labeling GM products. Terming it as trade restrictive, it has threatened to invoke the WTO provisions on creating technical barriers to trade, and sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures.

Either way, India is refusing to blindly toe the American line. The government has taken two significant measures to regulate GM products. First, the ministry of commerce has issued a notification, which prohibits the import of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) for food, feed or processing, industrial processing, research and development for commercialisation or environmental release without the approval of the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC).

Second, the health ministry has amended the Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA) Act, and issued a similar notification which covers import, manufacture, storage, distribution or sale of GM food. Both these new rules have also made labeling of GM products compulsory.

Human safety from eating GM foods has been a matter of great concern. After GM soya was introduced in the UK, for instance, cases of allergies went up. A 2005 study found that GM pea, which is under development, caused severe immune responses in mice.

Another study reported that GM maize-fed rats developed major lesions in kidneys and livers. Likewise, a number of other scientific studies have pointed out the harmful effects of GM food.

Notwithstanding GM industry claims to the contrary, the fact remains that many aspects of this technology still remain uncertain and several products are being released into the market without adequate tests and trials. In agriculture, for example, GM and non-GM crops cannot grow in isolation and can easily combine through pollination, mixing of seeds etc. Experiments to study the impact of such contamination on the environment and food have simply not been done. It is, therefore, to prevent illegal imports, and also to enable consumers to make a conscious choice that labeling norms are essential.

Since the US does not segregate GM products from non-GM ones, almost all processed food products contain traces of GMOs. This is also the main reason why they persistently oppose labeling. Ironically, while goods imported into the US have to meet the most stringent specification, whenever any US exporter is directed to follow the same procedures by the importing country, it is termed as a trade barrier. When similar tactics failed with India, the US turned to the WTO, which has legal instruments, to help it out.

Using multilateral bodies to prevent GM labeling is not new. The US has consistently blocked international legislation on labeling at various forums like the United Nations’ Food Standards Committee and Codex Committee on Food Labeling. However, this time it has challenged the sovereign right of India to decide about its food and its safety, something which is not only against democratic principles but also runs contrary to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. As it is, under pressure from edible oil importers in India, the commerce ministry has exempted the import of GM soybean oil from labeling requirement till March 2007.

Even the amended PFA of the health ministry is quite lax. Instead of rigorous biosafety tests before allowing the import, the ministry is merely relying on the safety information provided by the importer.

Further, the amendment is coming at a time when there is no laboratory in the country, which can test products for GM presence. Instead of protecting the health interests of the citizens by prohibiting production or import of GM food, the amendment in its present form intends to legalise its trade. Now, through the WTO, the US wants India to lift all curbs on the import of GM products into the country.

Incidentally, major trading partners of the US, such as Canada, Japan, South Korea, European Union and Australia follow their own GM labeling protocols but the US has never brought such complaints against these countries. It is obvious that the notifications are not only discriminatory but meant to browbeat India into submission.

While the extreme reaction of the US is not surprising, the government should resist the attempt of US to dump GM food into India and concerned citizens should insist on strengthening the PFA in the interest of the consumer.

The writer is with the Forum for Biotechnology & Food Security, New Delhi

Buniyad Youth Political Networking Group – http://www.groups.google.com/group/buniyad 

Indian Food Policy Group – http://www.groups.google.com/group/foodpolicy

1. I recently saw the interview on Door Darshan of Shri Devinder Sharma, noted Indian agriculture policy analyst, and his comments regarding the New Thrust to Agricultural Policy and Prime Minister directives to Planning Commission for next 5 Year Plan.
2. I was happy to note that the rhetoric of Second Green Revolution was not being bandied about even though the suggestions of pushing ball into the court of states was seemingly indicative of the humility of the Emperor’s courtiers, in the face of twin failures of presiding over agrarian crisis and falling production levels.

One should not however be fooled by this new Congress strategy of trying to appear as if its role is a maganimous one, in terms of extending a helping hand to the states in propping up agricultural produce, as the alarm bells regarding inflationary pressures, due to supply side constraints on agricultural front, have begun disturbing the sleep of the Indian Sensex Minister and Cricket Minister.
But what essentially are the details of this new strategy of support to the states ?
And what role is Bhau Sharad Pawar playing in all this ?
This needs to be very closely followed.

We all know how Shri Pawar has publicly defended high pesticide levels in mother’s milk to Indian infants, and import of wheat from Australian farmers at prices higher than he is willing to give to Punjab farmers, as he bravely juggles the roles of managing Indian cricket team, the urban food supply chain and the agricultural output of Indian farmers.

One wonders when he has such multifaceted talents, why is he not able to set up a regime of sustainable crop insurance for Indian farmers.
3. The focus now seems to be on empty agricultural productivity targets, and how falling agricultural production, is seen as a gaping hole in the Strategies of the Urban Economists like Montek Singh Ahluwahlia and Chidambaram.
So who will do the farming, mahila kisans ?

The Left has been conspicuously silent especially after all the negative publicity that their Chief Minister in Bengal has managed to win for them via Singur and Nandigram. They have no role to play ?
I think time is ripe for building political networks of a new generation of youth leadership, who can take on such out of touch politicians presiding over Indian agricultural and agrarian debacles.

All the years of Mrs Indira Gandhi’s efforts to build the foundations of Green Revolution are being dismantled by three economists.
4. No mention was made of separating Food Ministry from Agriculture Ministry, much as I would like to see this development. In my opinion this is essential.
http://foodminister.blogspot.com/
I would also like to see the concept of a separate Kisan Budget taking shape. Afterall, if other businesses and companies have the right to balance their accounts books why not the Indian farmer ? - http://kisanbudget.blogspot.com/

5. I was also extremely disappointed to see the quality of arguments of Chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices Prof T. Haque.
Was this luminary really serious about propagating the theory of interlinking of national rivers and canals and irrigating the hinterlands with surface water ?
Such patently absurd theoreticians are in charge of agricultural research, extension and praxis ?

No wonder Americans are being invited to reinvent Indian agriculture.
Prescriptions for Indian Farmers – http://merakisan.blogspot.com/
Unpatented Brilliant Ideas – http://nopatent.blogspot.com/
Mahila Kisan – http://mahilakisan.blogspot.com/
Kisan Mantri – http://kisanmantri.blogspot.com/

Indian Mahila Kisan Blog – http://www.mahilakisan.blogspot.com/

http://www.groups.google.com/group/buniyad