According to the experts. Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) should have taken the final decision strictly based on the scientific merit of the submission
India Agriculture Advancement Group (IAAG) International has approached Prime Minister, Narendra Modi expressing serious concern on the inordinate delay in the approval of draft guidelines for Safety Assessment of Genome/Gene-Edited Plants by the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), the regulatory body under the Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).
The draft guidelines were reviewed by an expert committee constituted by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and subsequently endorsed by the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) before it was forwarded to GEAC for approval. Therefore, sufficient scientific rigour has been applied to the formulation and endorsement of these guidelines for use across the country. GEAC should have taken the final decision strictly based on the scientific merit of the submission. Rather, the draft guidelines were sent to the States and Union Territories (UTs) seeking the comments on the exemption of the biosafety trials stipulated for the GM crops for SDN1 and SDN2 categories of genome-edited plants which will delay the process further.
Dr Ramesh Deshpande, Convener, IAAG International said, “The MoEF&CC’s communication to the states and UTs on the matter is likely to create confusion and wrong precedence. Genome-editing plants under the SDN1 and SDN2 category do not require any regulatory trials as these are similar to other varieties and hybrids bred through conventional plant breeding.”
Dr RS Paroda, Founder Chairman, Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS), said, “Outreach and effective communication strategy for much-needed public perception is critical to reap the benefits of genome-edited products. All stakeholders including government, public and private industry now need to work on the next step of educating public about the technology before it is open for public consultation because only then can an informed and unbiased decision be made.”
GEAC and MoEF&CC need to provide an early approval of the guidelines so that the country can begin to harness the benefits of gene-edited technology that has a great potential for scientific advances for ensuring nutritional and food security. To achieve the zero-hunger challenge of the United Nations, and to meet the Sustainable Development Goals 2030, especially SDG 1 and SDG 2 (eliminating poverty and hunger, respectively), we must significantly enhance the small farm productivity and double farmers’ income. Such a transformation will be possible only through the intelligent and intensive applications of new technologies and innovations such as genome editing.
The other signatories to the letter included eminent agricultural scientists Dr RB Singh, Dr Gurdev Khush and Dr G Padmanabhan. Among the others were Dr Deepak Pental, Dr KL Chadda, Dr Prabhakar Tamboli, Dr Jitendra Srivastava, Dr HS Gupta and Dr Malvika Dadlani.
