Monsanto Caught Illegally Planting GM Corn in India
http://wakeup-world.com/2012/02/08/monsanto-caught-illegally-planting-gm-corn-in-india/
February 8th 2012
By IndiaGmInfo
Ahead of a regulators’ meeting on February 8th 2012, and reacting to the confirmed reports of Monsanto’s illegal planting of Herbicide Tolerant (HT) maize in its GM maize trial, the Coalition for a GM-Free India demanded that Monsanto be blacklisted immediately. The violation was revealed in a response of the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee to an RTI application. “This agri-business corporation has been caught violating the law and norms repeatedly. The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) has also been caught failing in its duties. GEAC, in spite of violations brought to its notice earlier also, has never taken up any deterrent and penal action against this Multi National Company”, said the Coalition in a press statement issued in Delhi and a Press Conference held in Bengaluru. Monsanto’s illegal planting was known to the regulators (as the information was obtained through an RTI response from GEAC), but they chose not to look into the matter pro-actively and the regulators were in effect protecting Monsanto, alleged the Coalition.
The approval for the biosafety research level II trial (BRL-II , the penultimate stage before consideration for commercial cultivation) for Monsanto’s herbicide tolerant, insect resistant GM maize with stacked traits (two Bt genes and one herbicide tolerance gene) was granted during the GEAC meetings held on 15th November 2010 and 8th December 2010. This is also the first GM product of Monsanto in India in its own name and not in the name of associate companies like Mahyco. Monsanto and the biotech industry have been claiming that the herbicide tolerant, insect resistant GM maize with stacked traits would be approved soon.
“Monsanto’s GM maize trials have been going on for several seasons now in various locations around the country. It took a rare scientist in one monitoring team to point out the fact that planting of the herbicide-tolerant GM maize took place without permission from competent authorities! What is more damning is that there is no evidence of any discussion or action by the regulators on this finding. This clearly demonstrates that the regulators are unconcerned about biosafety violations or contamination and are protecting and supporting offenders like Monsanto”, said Kavitha Kuruganti, Member, Coalition for a GM-Free India.
The RTI response revealed that a team led by Dr Pradyumn Kumar of the Directorate of Maize Research (DMR is supposed to be supervising all the GM maize BRL II field trials), noted the following in its visit report (5th May 2011): “Before planting NK603 event treatment in future, the permission from competent authority may be obtained”. This clearly demonstrates that this field trial consisted of an unapproved, illegal GM herbicide tolerant maize while the trial is supposed to be for the hybrid of Bt genes’ line (MON89034) and herbicide tolerant line (NK603) (HT/Bt maize). A point to be noted is that trial protocols were prescribed by DMR along with GEAC and it was a DMR scientist who recorded the illegal planting of the HT maize line.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Monsanto and the other Global Corporations live above the restrictions of mere borders, governments, and regulations.
They are even powerful enough to place and keep their man inside of Obama's White House.
(Google: "Vilsack ties to Monsanto"
"but they chose not to look into the matter pro-actively and the regulators were in effect protecting Monsanto,"
THAT is the problem we have in the USA.
Not just Monsanto, but across the board in everything that matters.
Since the Reagan Revolution, the Watch Dog Agencies have been demonized, eliminated, de-funded,
downsized to a point of irrelevance, or are actually Getting Paid by the people they are supposed to be "regulating".
This cancer is now so widespread that it has become The New Normal as this country descends into 3rd World status.
DAMN Public Sector Bureaucrats, living the High Life on our Tax Dollars!!
Get them and all their pesky regulations OFF the BACKS of OUR Corporations!!!
The damage from 30 continuous years of Free Markets, De-Regulation, and Privatization will be difficult to undo.
It is going to be a long, hard fight to get back to where we were before Reagan.
I Want My America Back Too!