(a) whether France and other countries have imposed ban on the cultivation of
Genetically Modified (GM) crops;
(b) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor along with the reaction of the
Government thereto;
(c) whether there is any proposal to ban GM crops/seeds in the country;
(d) if so, the details thereof; and
(e) if not, the reasons therefor?
MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE (SHRI SHARAD PAWAR)
(a) to (e): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.
STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 252
DUE FOR REPLY ON 11TH DECEMBER, 2012.
(a) to (e): Safety assessment in regard to cultivation of Genetically Modified
(GM) crops is conducted by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on behalf
of the European Commission. EFSA has approved the cultivation of GM maize and
GM potato. France, and some other member States of the European Union like
Austria, Greece, Hungary, Germany and Luxembourg have, however, invoked
“safeguard clause†and prohibited the cultivation of GM maize in their respective
countries. Some other member States of the European Union like Spain, Portugal,
Czech Republic, Romania, Poland and Slovakia allow the cultivation of GM maize
and Germany allows the cultivation of GM potato. It is understood that EFSA has
considered the concerns raised by France and come to the conclusion that there is
no specific scientific evidence, in terms of risk to human and animal health or the
environment, that would invalidate its previous risk assessments of GM maize.
Government of India follows a case by case approach for the release of GM
crops in accordance with the internationally accepted biosafety norms as prescribed
by Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Codex
Alimentarius – International Food Standards, Food and Agriculture Organization of
the United Nations (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO). There is,
therefore, no proposal to ban GM crops in the country.
Source: EFSA Journal, 2012