Since Monsanto?s open admission that the pink bollworm pest?one of the major pests that attack cotton crop?has developed resistance to its Bt cotton variety, the debate on spurious seeds and effective measures to check rampant proliferation of untested seeds in the name of hybrids is back on centrestage.
With some scientists claiming that it is not genetically modified or hybrid seeds but their fake versions that cause all the trouble?a point which also found mention in Jairam Ramesh?s statement putting a moratorium on Bt brinjal?the whole question of spurious seeds and the need for strict checks has been reinforced.
It is well known that just like in cotton, illegal, untested hybrid varieties of seeds of other crops have been sold for a long time. Seeds usually develop resistance to the principal pests when an insufficient dose of toxins is administered, giving the target pests an open field to develop resistance and proliferate. As most spurious seeds are untested in government laboratories and not sold by registered companies, there are no checks and balances on the toxicity level or other parameters. In the case of cotton alone, unofficial reports show that 15 to 20 lakh acres of land is under spurious seeds and almost 90% is in Gujarat.
Surprisingly, independent studies and surveys have shown that the rampant usage of spurious seeds is greater in areas and crops where private seed companies are less prevalent. Then again, which large private seed company would encourage the proliferation of illegal seeds at its own expense? The presence of private seed companies evens the demand-supply imbalance since with their expertise, private companies can scale up supplies at short notice?another case for private companies to have active participation in farm technology. The Monsanto episode reinforces the need to fast-track implementation of the new Seeds Bill. The Bill, which was recently cleared by the Cabinet, seeks to check the sale of spurious seeds by making registration mandatory for the sale of seeds.
sanjeeb.mukherjee@expressindia.com