Nothing sells like fear. And nothing illustrates this better than what China is encountering in trying to promote genetically modified (GM) crops. The country is trying to promote GM food to expand its food supplies.

Joining ranks with nearly ten other big states, Gujarat government has now decided not to allow field trials of any Genetically Modified (GM) food crops within its boundaries. The decision is a significant one as it comes from the home state of prime minister Narendra Modi which he was leading till few months ago.

Public opposition to GM trials is fuelling government indecision, stranding India’s food research in the lab.

The apparatus responsible for monitoring field trials of genetically modified (GM) crops is in a shambles, an investigation by The Statesman has revealed. The State Biotechnology Coordination Committee (SBCC) in Maharashtra, which is supposed to monitor these trials, has not met in years, with some members being unaware even of its existence. The situation in neighbouring Gujarat is also similar. On the other hand, the District Level Committee (DLC), which is supposed to monitor trials as well as prepare off-site emergency plans, is virtually non-existent. In effect, the story of monitoring of GM crop trials is a story of monitoring and regulation falling through the cracks of laid-down procedures on paper and functioning of processes on the ground.

There is a raging debate in the country about BT brinjal which is poised to become India’s first GM food if the biotech industry has its way. Its entry is resisted by scientists and civil society groups that question its safety.

India will soon have an army of indigenous genetically engineered mosquitoes which are sterile and unable to reproduce, thereby wiping out deadly dengue and malaria spreading wild vectors.

A common fear that lurks in the minds of people around the world is that if a country’s food production relies excessively on supply of seeds and other inputs from a handful of multinationals that have virtual monopoly over genetically-modified (GM) crop technology, the nation will be forced to compromise on food security.

According to Dr Ashwani Mahajan, national convener of the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch, those who oppose GM crops field trials are not opposing science. In an interview with Yojna Gusai and Mukesh Ranjan, Dr Mahajan not only accuses the Modi government of succumbing to pressure from MNCs, but also blames it for playing politics on economic issues.

A day after allaying members' concerns over genetically modified crops in Parliament, the government on Wednesday dropped enough hint that it may eventually give its nod for 'confined' field trials of certain varieties of GM crops including rice, brinjal, chickpea, mustard and cotton.

The BJP, in its election manifesto, had said: “GM foods will not be allowed without full scientific evaluation on the long-term effects on soil, production and biological impact on consumers.”