All India Kisan Sabha (AiKs) wrote a letter to the Minister of Agriculture of the Union Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who expresses his strong opposition to the introduction, promotion and commercialization of gene -edited crops, including rice, in agricultural systems.
In the letter dated Friday, President Andr Pradesh Ryot Sangham (AIKS) G. Eswaraiah and the Secretary General of KVV Praad, were deeply afraid that this development was monitored without sufficient consultations with farmers, independent scientific assessment or transparent public debate. Seeds modified by gene threatening to create new forms of dependence for farmers and at the same time offer no proven long -term benefits.
In the past, AiKs expressed his concerns about BT Cotton and BT Brinjal. Although BT Cotton has been effective for several years, it later failed to check the pests. Lakhs of farmers suffered huge losses. Given that the 2004 seeds Act was not approved, in the absence of the correct system of crop insurance, farmers were not compensated, resulting in suicidal deaths.
” Facilitate strict liability laws for the purpose of possession of seeds and biotechnological companies responsible for economic and environmental damage caused by their products. Our bitter experience with BT Cotton should not be forgotten. Farmers must not be transformed into passive consumers of technologies of controlled enterprises. The real agricultural development consists in authorizing farmers through self -confidence. We hope that the ministry will take care of this call and take steps to protect the rights, livelihood and dignity of Indian farmers, ”they added.
Published – May 30, 2025 20:38
