POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. WHAT INDIA’S DRAFT DIGITAL PRIVACY LAW SAYS?

THE CONTEXT: The latest draft of the data protection law — the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022 (DPDP Bill, 2022) — has now been made open for public comments and the government is expected to introduce the Bill in Parliament in the budget session of 2023.

THE EXPLANATION:

• This is the fourth iteration of a data protection law in India. The first draft of the law — the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018, was proposed by the Justice Srikrishna Committee set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) with the mandate of setting out a data protection law for India.
• The government made revisions to this draft and introduced it as the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 (PDP Bill, 2019) in the Lok Sabha in 2019. On the same day, the Lok Sabha passed a motion to refer the PDP Bill, 2019 to a joint committee of both the Houses of Parliament. Due to delays caused by the pandemic, the Joint Committee on the PDP Bill, 2019 (JPC) submitted its report on the Bill after two years in December, 2021.
• The report was accompanied by a new draft bill, namely, the Data Protection Bill, 2021 that incorporated the recommendations of the JPC. However, in August 2022, citing the report of the JPC and the “extensive changes” that the JPC had made to the 2019 Bill, the government withdrew the PDP Bill.

Why have there been so many revisions and changes?

• Constant interactions with digital devices have led to unprecedented amounts of personal data being generated round the clock by users (data principals). When coupled with the computational power available today with companies (data fiduciaries), this data can be processed in ways that increasingly impair the autonomy, self-determination, freedom of choice and privacy of the data principal.
• The current legal framework for privacy enshrined in the Information Technology Rules, 2011 (IT Rules, 2011) is wholly inadequate to combat such harms to data principals, especially since the right to informational privacy has been upheld as a fundamental right by the Supreme Court ( K.S.Puttaswamy vs Union of India [2017]).
• It is inadequate on four levels; first, the extant framework is premised on privacy being a statutory right rather than a fundamental right and does not apply to processing of personal data by the government; second, it has a limited understanding of the kinds of data to be protected; third, it places scant obligations on the data fiduciaries which, moreover, can be overridden by contract and fourth, there are only minimal consequences for the data fiduciaries for the breach of these obligations.

What is the scope of the present formulation of the Bill?

The DPDP Bill, 2022 applies to all processing of personal data that is carried out digitally. This would include both personal data collected online and personal data collected offline but is digitised for processing. In effect, by being completely inapplicable to data processed manually, this provides for a somewhat lower degree of protection as the earlier drafts only excluded data processed manually specifically by “small entities” and not generally.

HEALTH ISSUES

2. FIRST DRUG TO DELAY TYPE 1 DIABETES

THE CONTEXT: The US Food and Drug Administration recently approved Tzield – the first drug to delay the onset of Type 1 diabetes.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is Type 1 Diabetes?

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic medical condition in which the pancreas produces little to no insulin. It was formerly known as insulin-dependent or juvenile diabetes. While it generally appears in children, teens, and young adults, it is known to occur at any age. It is rarer than the occurrence of type 2 diabetes. Preventive measures for this chronic condition are unknown. Symptoms include maintaining blood sugar level through regular monitoring, insulin therapy, diet and exercise.

What is Tzield?

• Tzield is a monoclonal antibody injection that is capable of preventing the body’s immune system from mistakenly attacking cells in the pancreas that make insulin. It was developed by drugmakers Sanofi and Provention Bio. The common side effects of this drug are decreased levels of certain white blood cells, rashes and headache. It can be administered to people aging 8 and older, who have early symptoms of type 1 diabetes. It is capable of delaying the onset of stage 3 type 1 diabetes in adults and in pediatric patients aging 8 years and above who have stage 2 type 1 diabetes.
• The approval for the medication was given based on the results of phase 2 of the clinical trial, involving 76 participants, who randomly received the drug or a placebo once daily intravenously for 14 days.

Why is the approval significant?

• People with type 1 diabetes usually require multiple injections of insulin every day for the rest of their lives. This causes a huge financial burden. In the absence of these treatments, patients will develop serious health complications, including diabetic ketoacidosis or death.
• Tzield’s ability to delay the clinical diagnosis of type 1 diabetes will reduce the financial burden of the ailment for months to years. It will also improve the quality of life for those who have been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

ENVIRONMENT, ECOLOGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

3. COP27 ESTABLISHES ‘LOSS AND DAMAGES’ FUND FOR CLIMATE REPARATIONS

THE CONTEXT: Delegates at the U.N.’s climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt thrashed out an agreement to establish a ‘Loss and Damages’ fund to compensate the most vulnerable countries for damages from climate-linked disasters.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The two-week long climate conference in Egypt has drawn to a close with a symbolic victory in the form of a fund that will compensate some of the countries bearing the brunt of climate change-linked natural disasters. However, progress on action to keep temperatures from rising beyond 1.5°C of pre-industrial levels was limited.
• The 27th edition of the United Nations Conference of the Parties was projected to be an ‘implementation’ COP that would have decisively resolved questions on how developed countries, responsible for the bulk of historical emissions, would make good on an old promise to provide developing countries $100 billion annually by 2020. And whether the world would commit to end all categories of fossil fuel, and not just coal. Despite hours of negotiations, these deadlocks remain.
• COP27 will certainly be remembered as the COP of Loss and Damages (L&D). A nearly three-decade old movement, first initiated by the island nation of Vanuatu and the Alliance of Small Island States, has come to partial fruition.
• There will now be a dedicated fund to compensate the most vulnerable developing countries that are already bearing the brunt of climate change-linked natural disasters. L&D refers to impacts of climate change that cannot be avoided either by mitigation (cutting greenhouse gas emissions) or adaptation (modifying practices to buffer against climate change impacts).
• They also include not only economic damage to property but also loss of livelihoods, and the destruction of biodiversity and sites that have cultural importance. This broadens the scope for affected nations to claim compensation.

Who will contribute ?

• The text approved at Sharm el-Sheikh only commits to a fund being created and leaves discussions for how it is to be set up and, most importantly, who will pay how much to it, for future COP negotiations. While there have been nominal commitments by Scotland and Wallonia (Belgium) to donate to such a fund, the estimated L&D is already over $500 billion.
• During negotiations this year, the European Union pressed hard for China, the Arab states and “large, developing countries” — and this could include India — to contribute on the grounds that they were large emitters.
• This already opens up fresh occasion for acrimony in future COPs and given that barely a third of committed climate finance has made its way to developing countries, the L&D fund too might take years before it can meaningfully operate. While the gain is incremental, countries ought not to lose momentum and must work harder to ensure that COPs remain credible catalysts and are not occasions for pyrrhic victories.

PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

4. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION TAG FOR THE NICOBARI HODI CRAFT

THE CONTEXT: The Geographical Indications Registry, Chennai, has received an application from the Tribal Development Council, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, seeking the Geographical Indication (GI) tag for the Nicobarihodi craft. This is the first application from the Union Territory seeking a tag for one its products.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Nicobari hodi-

• The hodi is the Nicobari tribe’s traditional craft.
• It is an outrigger canoe, very commonly operated in the Nicobar group of islands.
• The technical skills for building a hodi are based on indigenous knowledge inherited by the Nicobarese from their forefathers.
• The hodi is built using either locally available trees or from nearby islands, and its design varies slightly from island to island.
• Considerations to be taken into account including the length of the finished canoe, which has to be 12 times that of its width while the length of the undressed tree trunk has to be 15 times this width.
• Hodis are used for transporting people and goods from one island to another, for sending coconuts, for fishing and racing purposes.
• The tuhet, a group of families under a headman, consider the hodi an asset.
• Hodi races are held between islands and villages.

About Geographical Indication (GI) Tag-

• Geographical Indication (GI) is an indication used to identify goods having special characteristics originating from a definite geographical territory.
• The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 seeks to provide for the registration and better protection of geographical indications relating to goods in India.
• It is governed and directed by the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).
• It was decided and also stated under Articles 1 (2) and 10 of the Paris Convention that the protection of industrial Property and Geographical Indication are elements of Intellectual Property.
• It is primarily an agricultural, natural or a manufactured product (handicrafts and industrial goods).
• This tag is valid for a period of 10 years following which it can be renewed.

5. BLACK-NAPED PHEASANT-PIGEON

THE CONTEXT: Scientists have rediscovered the black-naped pheasant pigeon, a rare bird that was last sighted almost 140 years ago in Papua New Guinea. The bird was spotted deep in the forests of Papua New Guinea in footage captured by the research team.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Black-Naped Pheasant-Pigeon

• Before the recent rediscovery, Black-Naped Pheasant-Pigeon was first and last seen in 1882.
• It is a large, terrestrial pigeon having black and orange feathers and red eyes.
• It feeds on seeds and fallen fruits.
• The species is endemic to Fergusson Island in Papua New Guinea.
• It split from the species Otidiphaps nobilis, which diverged from all other species some 26.1 million years ago. Otidiphaps nobilis is part of the Columbidae family, which diverged from all other species during the Paleogene period, some 32.7 million years ago.
• The population is dwindling because of the loss of forest habitats, which is caused by the logging and conversion for subsistence agriculture gardens. Conservation activities of the species’ habitat are few and far between.
• In July 2021, though the species’ population is undetermined, was listed as a critically endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with an estimated population of 50 to 249 birds.

How was the species rediscovered?

• Black-Naped Pheasant-Pigeon was rediscovered by a research team that was part of The Search for Lost Birds – a collaboration between BirdLife International, Rewild, and American Bird Conservancy. The objective of the collaborative initiative is to rediscover bird species that have not been declared as extinct but has not been sighted for more than a decade. Currently, there are 150 such species that has remained elusive for more than 10 years.
• Researchers, as part of The Search for Lost Birds, sought to find Black-Naped Pheasant-Pigeon since 2019. In September 2022, they found the species at the western slope of Mount Kilkerran – the highest peak of Fergusson Island. This is only the second time in history that the species has been spotted. Confirmation of the species’ presence gives hope for other birds that have not been spotted in decades. The detailed data provided by the research team will form the basis for the conservation of endemic bird species of Fergusson Island.

6. DALAI LAMA RECEIVES GANDHI MANDELA AWARD

THE CONTEXT: The 14th Dalai Lama was conferred the Gandhi Mandela Award 2022 at Thekchen Choeling in Dharamshala’s McleodGanj by Himachal Pradesh governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Tibetan spiritual leader, receiving the peace prize from the New Delhi-based Gandhi Mandela Foundation, said the qualities of non-violence and compassion had been ingrained in Indian culture for thousands of years.
• “The Gandhi Mandela Foundation is overwhelmed to accomplish the historical ceremony when the Gandhi Mandela Award is conferred to His Holiness Dalai Lama.
• The event was attended by former Chief Justice of India Justice KG Balakrishnan and former Supreme Court Justice Gyan Sudha Misra.

What is the Gandhi Mandela Award?

• A government of India registered Trust, the Gandhi Mandela Foundation is a non-profit organisation, formed with the motive to promote Mahatma Gandhi’s and former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela’s values of non-violence. It has constituted an international prize, the Gandhi Mandela Award.
• The foundation instituted the award on the 150th birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, MK Gandhi.

Who gets the award and how are they selected?

• The award is given to personalities who have carried forward the legacies of Gandhi and Mandela by making significant contributions in the fields of Peace, Social Welfare, Culture, Environment, Education, Healthcare, Sports and Innovation.

This time, the awardee, Dalai Lama, was selected by a jury including former Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan and Justice Dipak Misra, former Supreme Court Judge Gyan Sudha Misra, former Chief Justice of Nepal Justice Kedarnath Upadhyay and former Chief Justice of Bangladesh Justice MD Tafazzul Islam.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTION

QUESTION OF THE DAY

Q1. Consider the following statements:
1. Barren Island is the only active volcano of India.
2. Narcondam Island is an example of dormant volcano.
3. Barren Island is located north of Narcondam Island.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: A
Explanation:
Please refer to the given map:

1. The paradox of sacrifice READ MORE
2. A Positive Engagement READ MORE

1. A tigress entered Almora from Corbett and was shot; Where is the accountability? READ MORE
2. Health as the focus of air pollution policy READ MORE
3. Joint effort. ‘Water credits’ can fund climate needs READ MORE

1. Focus is on education, conserving culture & customs READ MORE
2. Is climate change affecting global health? READ MORE  

1. Chasing utopia — the quest for a Uniform Civil Code READ MORE
2. Earning the ticket: Dropping underperforming MLAs is good practice. But it’s possible only in parties with strong leadership READ MORE
3. Electoral reforms must in all quarters READ MORE
4. JUDICIAL REFORM: A DAUNTING DECELERATION READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Xi urges better ties in rare summit with Australia READ MORE
2. Nine Russian banks open Vostro accounts for rupee trade READ MORE
3. India’s population growth appears to be stabilising: UN READ MORE
4. In worst slide since 2020, October exports drop 16.7% to $29.78 bn READ MORE
5. Kashi Tamil Sangamam begins Thursday: What is the ancient connect between Kashi and the Tamil land? READ MORE
6. India abstains on UNGA resolution calling for Russia to pay reparations to Ukraine READ MORE
7. Data protection Bill revised: Penalty up to Rs 200 crore if firms don’t have safeguards READ MORE
8. State of the Climate in Asia 2021 READ MORE
9. Explained | Google’s 1,000 language AI model READ MORE

Main Exam

GS Paper- 1

1. Focus is on education, conserving culture & customs READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Chasing utopia — the quest for a Uniform Civil Code READ MORE
2. Earning the ticket: Dropping underperforming MLAs is good practice. But it’s possible only in parties with strong leadership READ MORE
3. Electoral reforms must in all quarters READ MORE
4. JUDICIAL REFORM: A DAUNTING DECELERATION READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

1. Is climate change affecting global health? READ MORE  

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. G20: India’s development model can lead the way READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. The shape of the Indian economic pie must change READ MORE
2. RBI should pause rate hikes, boost growth READ MORE
3. Can India Seize the Demographic Advantage? READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. A tigress entered Almora from Corbett and was shot; Where is the accountability? READ MORE
2. Health as the focus of air pollution policy READ MORE
3. Joint effort. ‘Water credits’ can fund climate needs READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. The paradox of sacrifice READ MORE
2. A Positive Engagement READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘The EWS quota is unfair because it twists the idea of social justice by bequeathing further privilege to communities who are historically situated to benefit from the caste system’. How far do you agree with this view? Analyse your views.
2. ‘The agriculture of tomorrow is going to be science-based, and the winners will be those who adopt it and develop it further today’. In the light of this statement, discuss whether India should start genetically modified cropping?
3. ‘The US is welcome to cement its partnership with India in various sectors, but it is well advised not to dictate terms to the latter with regard to Russia’. Comment on the statement in the light of recent developments in International politics.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• You cannot spend your way out of recession or borrow your way out of debt.
• With S&P Global’s latest Business Outlook survey pointing to an intensification of wage pressures and producer pass-through of costs, authorities can ill-afford to drop their guard in the fight against inflation.
• A discussion on the viability of an otherwise unenforceable UCC has been made possible only because it finds an inscrutable mention in the Directive Principles of State Policy.
• The majority needs to benefit much faster than a tiny minority on top, which will require reforms of institutions and economic ideology and the Government listening to the needs of common citizens.
• India’s long-term strategy for low carbon development is consistent with its net-zero targets and outlines a road map for key industries.
• As the second highest user of freshwater in the country, industry can use its CSR funds imaginatively so that conservation gains are maximized.
• Water credits represent a fixed quantum of water that is conserved or generated and can be transacted between water deficit and water surplus entities within a sub-basin.
• To make the electoral system free and fair in the world’s largest democracy, the use of money and muscle power must be curbed in the Indian context.
• Without an efficient justice delivery system and a subsisting rule of law, a country’s development would be a utopian thought only.
• Judicial Infrastructure of our country has not improved & paced up to achieve the desired level since the British period.
• The demand for justice and change in the justice delivery system cannot be suppressed or ignored in the manner it is perverting in India. It needs to be enhanced with technology for curtailing the cost and the barrier of language in the Indian judicial system.
• The demand for justice and change in the justice delivery system cannot be suppressed or ignored in the manner it is perverting in India. It needs to be enhanced with technology for curtailing the cost and the barrier of language in the Indian judicial system.
• Paramount change in the existing law and adequate judicial infrastructure is required to accelerate the judicial system, to deliver qualitative, speedy justice to the citizens of India by saving millions of lives from being frustrated with the judicial system and the process of access to justice.
• In the new India, access to justice is the privilege of the powerful and rich people. Poor people are still suffering from the quantum of injustice which begins with a traffic constable up to the Supreme Court.

50-WORD TALK

• India’s COP27 commitment to raise its installed nuclear power capacity by threefold by 2032 as part of its long-term low-carbon development strategy is encouraging. India’s nuclear sector has enormous potential to expand but overcautious government plans have crawled. Nuclear is expensive, which’s where rich countries should step in and help.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.
• Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.

[WpProQuiz 370]

THE CONTEXT: In June 2021, the export of about 500 tonnes of rice from India has triggered an uproar in several European countries on the grounds that it was genetically modified (GM) rice. It was due to the use of one ingredient: rice flour with genetically modified (GM) contamination that allegedly originated in India, according to notifications on the European Commission’s rapid alert system.

However, the Indian government has denied this possibility with a Commerce Ministry spokesperson alleging that the contamination may have happened in Europe “to cut costs”. In this backdrop, India has indicated that it will commission an investigation involving its scientific bodies.

In this article, we will analyse, what are GM crops, their merits, implications, causes and their way forward for India.

WHAT IS THE ISSUE?

India asks European Commission to back up GM-rice claims with evidence

The Centre has identified a Maharashtra based exporter as Omprakash Shivaprakash, a wholesaler from Akola in Maharashtra.

Also, it’s stated, “There is no possibility of cross-contamination even during inland transit as the final sample was prepared at the port of loading by an independent inspection agency which is internationally accredited, which after proper testing and verification have obtained a non-GMO proof prior to shipment, the certificate was issued by Bureau Veritas (India) Pvt Ltd.

“GMO contamination was suspected in rice flour that was processed in the European Union, and they themselves are not sure of the exact source of the contaminant. Exported from India,” a commerce ministry statement said. Broken white rice, which is reportedly one of the possibilities, has passed through several hands before reaching the actual processors in the European Union.

Reiterating that GM rice is not grown commercially in India, the ministry has asked genetic and rice experts including the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) to conduct an investigation.

WHAT ARE GM CROPS?

• Genetically Modified Organisms are defined as organisms including plants, animals, and micro-organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) is altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating or natural recombination.
• The technology used is referred to as gene technology, genetic engineering, or recombinant DNA technology. GM crops are those crops whose DNA has been modified by introducing alien genes in the seeds to get desired effects such as resistance to pest attacks.
• Unlike what plant breeders did traditionally in cross-breeding by combining genes from the same or closely related plant species, GM technology does not restrict trait selection. Genes from any living organism, be it plants or animals, is used to arrive at the desired traits.
• India has approved the commercial cultivation of only one GM crop, Bt cotton. No GM food crop has ever been approved for commercial cultivation in the country. However, confined field trials have been allowed for at least 20 GM crops.

GM CROPS IN INDIA

Golden rice:

It is a variety of rice produced through genetic engineering to biosynthesize beta-carotene, a precursor of vitamin A, in the edible parts of rice. It is intended to produce a fortified food to be grown and consumed in areas with a shortage of dietary vitamin A.

Vitamin A deficiency causes xerophthalmia, a range of eye conditions from night blindness to more severe clinical outcomes such as keratomalacia and corneal scars, and permanent blindness. It also increases the risk of mortality from measles and diarrhoea in children.

In 2013, the prevalence of deficiency was the highest in sub-Saharan Africa (48%; 25–75), and South Asia (44%; 13–79).

Although golden rice has met significant opposition from environmental and anti-globalisation activists, more than 100 Nobel laureates in 2016 encouraged the use of genetically modified golden rice which can produce up to 23 times as much beta-carotene as the original golden rice

Bt Cottons:

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton is a genetically modified plant. For the time being, the genetically modified crop that is under cultivation in India is Bt cotton which is grown over 10.8 million hectares. Bt Cotton was first utilize in India in 2002.

Bt Brinjal:

The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) in 2007 recommended the commercial release of Bt Brinjal, which was developed by Mahyco (Maharashtra Seeds Company) in collaboration with the Dharwad University of Agricultural Sciences & the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. But the proposal was blocked in 2010.This has been commercially grown in Bangladesh since 2013.

GM Mustard:

Dhara Mustard Hybrid-11 or DMH-11 is a genetically modified selection of mustard developed by the Delhi University’s Centre for Genetic Manipulation of crops plants.

The researchers at Delhi University have created hybridized mustard DMH-11 using “barnase or barstar” technology for genetically modification. GM Mustard is an herbicide Tolerant (HT) crop.In 2017, GEAC has recommended the commercial approval of our first food biotech crop. With the decision pending with the environment ministry, the farming and scientific community hopes that GM mustard will get clearance soon. If approved by the centre, this will be the second GM crop, after Bt Cotton, and the first transgenic food crop to be acceptable for cultivation in the country.

WHAT IS THE LEGAL POSITION OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED CROPS IN INDIA?

• Constituted under the ‘Rules for the Manufacture, Use /Import /Export and Storage of Hazardous Microorganisms/Genetically Engineering Organisms or Cells, 1989’ notified under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• In India, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) is the apex body that allows for the commercial release of GM crops.
• In 2002, the GEAC had allowed the commercial release of Bt cotton. More than 95 per cent of the country’s cotton area has since then come under Bt cotton.
• Use of the unapproved GM variant can attract a jail term of 5 years and a fine of Rs 1 lakh under the Environmental Protection Act,1989.
• In August 2020, FSSAI had also issued the order that 24 food crops the country imports would need a ‘non-GM-origin-cum-GM-free certificate’.
• FSSAI is the authorized body to regulate the imported crops in India.

ADVANTAGES OF GM CROPS

• The Main advantage of genetically modified foods is that crop yields become more consistent and productive, allowing more people to be fed. According to Oxfam, the world currently formed about 20% more food calories than what is required for every human being to be healthier.
• It improves production and raises farmers income. Indian farmers are still practising the traditional procedure of seeding and cultivation, which required scientific moves for raising their production. Hence, it is one of the moves to develop farm production.
• GM foods have a longer shelf life. This enhances the ease of transportation and storage. Also, GM crops are high yielding crops but the problem lies in the fragmentation of land.
• GMOs may have fewer pesticides. Many GMO crops have been altered to be less vulnerable to insects and other pests. For example, Bt-cornis a GMO crop that has a gene added from Bacillus thuringiensis, a naturally occurring soil bacteria. This gene causes the corn to produce a protein that kills many pests and insects, helping to protect the corn from damage.
• GMOs are usually cheaper. GMO crops are bred to grow efficiently – this means that farmers can produce the same amount of food using less land, less water, and fewer pesticides than conventional crops. In some cases, the costs of foods like corn, beets, and soybeans may be cut by 15% to 30%.
• GMOs may have more nutrients. Certain GMO crops are designed to provide more nutrients like vitamins or minerals. For example, researchers have been able to create a modified form of African corn that contains:
• 2 times as much folate when compared to traditional crops
• 6 times as much vitamin C when compared to traditional crops
• 169 times more beta-carotene than traditional crops. This may be especially helpful in regions where people suffer from nutritional deficiencies.

CONCERNS OF GM CROPS

• The production imposes high risks to the disruption of ecosystem and biodiversity because the ‘better’ traits formed from the engineering genes can affect the favouring of one organism. Hence, it can eventually disrupt the natural procedure of gene flow.
• GM Crops increase the cost of cultivation and are more inclined towards marketization of farming that works in immoral profits.
• The transgenic crops endanger not only farmers but also the trade, and the environment as well.
• GMOs may cause allergic reactions. Because GMO foods contain DNA from other organisms, it’s possible that the new DNA can trigger allergies in people who wouldn’t normally be allergic to the food. In one instance, a GMO soybean crop created using DNA from a Brazil nut was unsafe for people with nut allergies and couldn’t be released to the public.
• GMOs may increase antibiotic resistance. When GMO scientists insert new DNA into plant cells, they will often add in an additional gene that makes the modified cells resistant to antibiotics. They can then use an antibiotic to kill off any plant cells that didn’t successfully take in the new DNA.

THE WAY FORWARD

Government should set up an independent regulator at the earliest: In 2014, more than 18 million farmers in 28 countries planted GM crops on 181.5 million hectares. While that in itself is not reason enough for India to push transgenic crops, the government should go beyond what is politically expedient and set up an independent regulator at the earliest. The charged atmosphere surrounding GM crops notwithstanding, the government’s policy should be led by science, not emotions.

Need for Refined Policies, a major global seed maker, says the policy on GM crops needs to be clearly defined, and the government should provide a level-playing field to both public and private sector companies.

Lack of Research & Awareness: Besides the increased incidence of pest attacks, Srinivas has not seen an adverse impact from Bt cotton on his soil or groundwater. His observation may just be anecdotal, but there is not enough conclusive research to counter him. A 2013 study by Italian researchers of 1,783 studies published between 2002 and 2012 did not find any significant hazard to human health, biodiversity, or the environment caused by GM crops.

Niti Aayog released a report that said, “As a part of its strategy to bring a Second Green Revolution, India must return to permitting proven and well tested GM technologies with adequate safeguards. Additionally, India urgently needs a technological breakthrough in oilseeds and pulses.”

Pew Research Centre survey published in January 2015, 88% of American scientists polled found GM foods safe. “GM crops go through the kind of rigorous testing that no other Agri product goes through. There is no evidence of their impacting biodiversity or soil health,”

Similarly, the 2015-2016 Economic Survey has also called for a faster rollout of GM crops: “Concerns about the affordability of hybrids and GM seeds, environmental and ethical issues in the cultivation of GM crops, risks to the food chain, disease spread and cross-pollination have resulted in their non-introduction. These issues need to be debated, tested, evaluated, so that introduction of hybrids is facilitated in the next three to six months.”

THE CONCLUSION

• The second decade of the 21st century, 2011 to 2020, has turned out to be the lost decade for India, as far as agriculture biotechnology is concerned. The GEAC has held only 35 meetings in 10 years and even recommended trials were not held.This contrasts sharply with the previous decade, when the GEAC held almost 81 meetings, and over a dozen GM crops were in various stages of development.
• This is a complete reversal of the fundamental legal philosophy of modern civilisation, which holds that one is innocent unless proven guilty. The yardstick now being used for GM crops is that these crops are inherently dangerous, and therefore presumed guilty unless it can be shown that they are not. But a negative can never be proven.
• The illegal cultivation of HT Bt cotton, Bt brinjal and gave us a clear indication that there is a trend of GM crops from field trials ending up in our farms and food. It is an unfortunate truth that our regulatory system has been found ineffective in curbing this. It is also shocking that GEAC has failed to take effective action to even identify those behind seed supply.
• Indian farmers are the true representatives of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, and their product is the original ‘Make in India’, long before these slogans were coined.

Value Addition:

India’s Rice Export:

India holds more than 85% share of global Basmati Rice exports

• India already accounts for a lion’s share of Basmati rice exports. More than 85% of the global Basmati exports (by quantity and by value) are from India. In India, the quantity of Basmati exported is about 37% of the total rice exported by quantity and 60% by value in 2018-19. During the same period, in Pakistan, Basmati exports comprised 13% of rice exports by quantity and almost 29% by value.
• India’s annual rice exports amount to 18 million tonnes worth Rs 65,000 crores and reach more than 75 countries.
• After exporting a record 17.71 million tonnes of rice in 2020-21, an increase of 86% over the previous year’s 9.5 million tonnes, India is set for another good season of exports in 2021-22 as well, despite high freight costs.