[DEBATE] : (Fwd) GMOs infect Indian brinjal

[Patrick Bond]

Poison in Your Stomach

Sep 01, 2008 By Devinder Sharma

Devinder Sharma's ZSpace Page / ZSpace

After the rats, goats, sheep and cows, it is now the turn of Indians. In 
a few months from now, if the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee 
(GEAC) of India has its way, the first genetically modified food crop - 
Bt Brinjal - will be on your table.

Whether it is the laboratory rats or the higher mammals, the animals 
have been more discerning. Probably they have the sixth instinct, which 
the humans sadly lack. There is otherwise no explanation why the 
laboratory rats, for instance, should always be spurning the GM foods. 
And when force fed, rats have invariably developed tumours, develop 
deformed body organs, including kidneys and liver, and led to several 
serious diseases and ailments.

We have heard repeatedly of the death of sheep and goats when left to 
graze in the Bt cotton fields. First it was reported from Andhra Pradesh 
and now newspaper reports point to Orissa. Not much is however public 
about how the cattle react. Several farmers in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh 
and Haryana have told me that cows avoid the Bt cotton fields when left 
to openly graze.

The Bt gene that has been infused in Bt cotton (or Bt corn on which most 
of the laboratory rats studies have been conducted) is no different from 
the same gene drawn from a soil bacterium - scientifically called Bt - 
that is now being incorporated in Brinjal. This gene releases a toxin 
within the plant that kills fruit-and-shoot borer insects. The 
Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (Mahyco), which is spearheading research 
on Bt Brinjal, claims that the genetically-modified Brinjal is safe for 
human consumption.

I have never been overawed by the safety claims made by the companies. 
For several decades now, we were told that cigarette smoking wasn't 
harmful to human health, chemical pesticides were completely safe, and 
white sugar poses no danger to human body. These are not the only 
products that received the safety certificate. The list is endless. And 
yet, decades later, and after inflicting a heavy human cost world over, 
most of these products are being banned or phased out. The way 
sugar-based food products have hit the market, and all are vouched safe, 
diabetes has suddenly assumed epidemic proportions.

Talking about diabetes, and realising that the disease is growing at an 
alarming scale, the disappearance of the traditionally-cultivated 
Brinjal from the market, will surely take away one of the simple home 
remedies and widely-practiced dietary solution to combat the Type-2 
diabetes. I too suffer from Type-2 diabetes, and therefore find it 
appalling to see as to why no scientific organisation, including the 
GEAC, is coming clean on what the genetically modified Brinjal will mean 
to people like me.

What about diabetic mommies? Pregnant women are increasingly becoming 
prone to Gestational diabetes -- a temporary form of diabetes. In recent 
years, the number of  affected women who have crossed-over to full-blown 
diabetes is increasing - almost 25 per cent get Type-2 diabetes within 
15 years. Whatever be the safety claims, the fact remains that no 
medical studies have been conducted to show that the therapeutic 
properties in a normal Brinjal will not change when the fruit is 
genetically modified.

Even if you are not a diabetic don't think you are safe. So far you have 
been made to believe that by proper washing of the Brinjal veggies you 
could get rid of the harmful pesticide residues. That may not hold true 
anymore. You will not be able to wash the toxins once the Bt Brinjal 
arrives in your kitchen. No, I am not talking of the pesticide coating 
on the outer skin. The toxin will now be within the Bt Brinjal.

And if you don't believe me, let us listen to Prof Dave Schubert of the 
Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California: "The Bt toxin is 
1000 times more concentrated than in Bt sprays, which do not themselves 
have a history of safe use." In simple words, what Dr Schubert says is 
that genetically modified Bt plants, and that includes Bt Brinjal, carry 
a toxin that is a thousand times more potent than what is used to kill 
insects. Strains of Bt have been used as sprays to control harmful 
insets. Spine chilling, isn't it?

The problem is that once Bt Brinjal enters the market, there is no way 
you can distinguish it from the normal ones. Your vegetable vendor will 
never be able to sell you the normal Brinjal that you are so used to 
buying. Moreover, once the genie is out, there is no way to call it 
back. To make matters worse, the GEAC has given permission to conduct 
multi-location trials on Karnataka's famed traditional Brinjal varieties 
- Udupi Gulla. Cultivated for its special taste and unique flavour in 
the Udupi district of Karnataka, these strains are tied in such strong 
socio-cultural traditions that even today the Gulla Brinjal variety is 
offered to Lord Krishna on festive paryaya ceremonies.  

Tracing out the antiquity of the cultivation and use of Brinjal in 
India, Ramesh Bhat of the Centre for Science, Society and Culture, 
Hyderabad, writes in a detailed paper in the journal Asian Agri-History 
that Gulla varieties (especially Mattu Gulla) are a perfect example of 
'plant-God-science' relationship. "The example of Mattu Gulla shows how 
local farmers can choose a variety that meets their local needs and 
preferences, and is best suited to their specific local ecosystems. The 
practices adopted by farmers of Udupi have a scientific basis - both 
traditional and modern."

Realising the uniqueness of the Mattu Gulla Brinjal, the Karnataka State 
Department of Horticulture is trying to preserve the genetic wealth by 
seeking a geographical indication on the Gulla strains. Ironically, the 
same variety for which GI is being sought by the Karnataka government is 
now ready for genetic plunder. The GVK University of Agricultural 
Science and Technology, Bangalore, is trying to introduce a Bt gene into 
the Gulla strains thereby contaminating the genetic make-up of the 
traditional variety. The uniqueness of the Gulla varieties, preserved 
for over four thousand years by local farmers, awaits erosion at the 
hands of agricultural biotechnologists.

Why worry about this Bt Brinjal, some might say. Isn't it necessary for 
improving production and productivity, some of you might argue. First of 
all, let me assure you that there is no shortage of Brinjal. Nor do the 
Bt Brinjal increases productivity and production. But what Bt Brinjal 
does for sure is to bring India's first genetically altered food crop 
onto your dining table. It is time you woke up before it is too late.


From: Z Net - The Spirit Of Resistance Lives
URL: http://www.zcommunications.org/zspace/commentaries/3606