Govt panel clears GM mustard 

New Delhi : A government panel has cleared commercial use of what would be India's first genetically modified (GM) food crop, but the political establishment will still have to give final approvals amid wide-spread public opposition to the technology. Technical clearance for indigenously developed GM mustard seeds was given on August 11 by the panel of government and independent experts following multiple reviews of crop trial data generated over almost a decade, said two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.

• India spends tens of billions of dollars on importing edible oils
• Farmers stuck with old technology, yields are at a fraction of world levels
• Cultivable land shrinking and weather patterns are less predictable, experts say
• Political and public opposition to lab-altered food remains strong amid fears that GM crops could compromise food safety and biodiversity

The decision to go ahead is likely to be made public soon by the environment ministry's Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC). News of the approval comes at a time when US seed maker Monsanto - which dominates the GM cotton market in India - has withdrawn an application seeking approval for its next generation GM cotton seeds in India. Permitting GM food crops is a big call for India, which spends tens of billions of dollars importing edible oils and other food items every year.

Farmers are stuck with old technology, yields are at a fraction of world levels, cultivable land is shrinking and weather patterns have become less predictable, experts say. But political and public opposition to lab-altered food remains strong amid fears that GM crops could compromise food safety and biodiversity. Modi, however, who was instrumental in making Gujarat state India's leading user of GM cotton when he was chief minister there, cleared several field trials for GM crops soon after taking office in New Delhi in 2014.

By Mayank Bhardwaj & Krishna N. Das