August 13, 2012

 

India's Maharashtra cancels GM seed supplier's license

 

 

The license of a prominent supplier of GM seeds, Mahyco, has been terminated by Maharashtra, India's No. two cotton producing state.

 

The cancellation throws into doubt supply issues relating to the crop variety, which catapulted the country into the league of major exporters.

 

Three officials said that the state government acted after the company defaulted on supplies and withheld information on distribution plans, provoking cotton farmers to protest as their cultivation was affected.

 

"We have cancelled their license, but they have the right to appeal," Maharashtra's Agriculture Commissioner Umakant Dangat said.

 

The Maharashtra government had filed a case last year as the company had committed to supplying 1.68 million GM cotton seeds last year but gave a supply plan only for 222,000 seeds, another official, who didn't want to be named, said.

 

Dangat said the government wants to ensure the situation isn't repeated this year. Mahyco said it hasn't received any official communication from Maharashtra on cancellation of its license.

 

The company said in a statement that Mahyco has complied with all the guidelines set by the state agriculture department, adding that it will address the issue once it receives official communication.

 

India permitted the commercial cultivation of GM cotton in 2002. Since then, production has jumped manifold, reaching a record 34.5 million bales in 2011-12. Bt cotton, a GM variety, now covers about 90% of the country's total acreage.

 

Of late, GM cotton has come under greater scrutiny amid complaints from farmers ranging from supply side issues to yields. Maharashtra accounts for 20% of India's cotton production and is the second-highest producer after the adjoining state of Gujarat.

 

"We have been asking the government" to end the monopoly of these seed companies. It should promote local varieties so that there is less chance of a monopoly, Kishore Tiwari of Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti, a lobby group in Maharashtra's cotton belt, said.

 

Farmers in Maharashtra and Gujarat will likely face strong challenges this year due to adverse weather conditions, which have hit cotton among other crops.

 

"There could be a slight reduction in cotton production," S.K. Goel, Maharashtra's agriculture secretary, said. "About 50% of the crop area is in very good condition, but rains are not satisfactory in Marathwada [a prominent region]."