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Farmers cautioned on BT-cotton

Too much media hype over BT-cotton is worrying officials who last week allowed farmers to grow this for the first time in India.

BT stands for Bacillus Thuringiensis, a soil bacteria whose gene was introduced into native cotton plants to create a genetically modified variety that produced its own pesticide.

Field trials by Maharashtra Hybrid Company monitored by the Department of Biotechnology showed that BT-cotton had a better yield than normal hybrids and was able to withstand attack by bollworms, a deadly pest.

After debating for over three years, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee on February 26 gave conditional approval for cultivating three cotton hybrids carrying the BT gene beginning this year.

Seeds are to be sold by Monsanto-Mahyco Biotech Limited, a joint venture of the US multinational with Mahyco.

While the first commercial planting is yet to start, the onslaught of media reports conjuring up visions of bumper harvest, poor suicide-prone farmers suddenly getting rich, and India dominating the world cotton business is making a section of the scientific community uncomfortable.

"I am worried about all this hype," says Prasantha Kumar Ghosh, senior adviser in DBT and a member of GEAC who staunchly believes that GM crops have a role to play in India if introduced after proper evaluation.

Ghosh, in an interview warned that over promotion of the product might lull farmers into believing "BT-cotton would control all insects without the use of any insecticide sprays."

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