We need accountability, collective responsibility
Article from the Goan fashion designer Wendell Rodricks, Times of India, Jun, 26.
Goans can’t continue to run scared of uncertainty. When trust is in place and all Goans are responsible for the collective development of the state, it will lead to progress, says Wendell Rodricks.
Those who say that development is bad for Goa actually mean to say that the change in Goa is at too rapid a pace. It is foolish not to want progressive development.
Who does not want a clinic and a doctor in each village? A playground? A job opportunity? We all do. Goans must comprehend that even progressive development comes at a price. Trees will be cut. Land will be levelled.We must accept that! What people cannot accept are doubts about the intent of the administrators of power, real estate developers, mega project developers and entrepreneurs solely with private gain on their minds.
Goans are educated enough to know about ill intent. They can figure out a kickback commission on a bird-brained project like a sea link. Or an airbus. Or another airport. In a state as small as Goa, there is a genuine concern that in 20 years, the state will be a concrete skeleton. There are far too many homes and spaces left unused or under litigation. At some point we Goans need to decide how much is enough. Since it is almost every Indian’s wish to have a home in Goa, are we going to accommodate one billion people’s dreams? The vast housing projects, on paper and in reality, enjoy one week occupancy of the actual owner per year.Will Goa become a concrete jungle of unused homes?
It will; going by what we see in Calangute, Baga and all over Goa. Empty buildings with three or four families in permanent residence. Certainly, no one has given a thought for basic amenities like water and power for this influx of catastrophic proportions.
Questions are raised accompanied with valid doubts.Who are we building for? Is this building spree not an exploitation of real estate? Where will Goa get the natural and manmade resources to support the population growth? When will this migration end? Should we not control it to a point?
What are also questionable are the comparisons with the rest of India. What works in Gujarat will not work here.And vice versa.Why do we have IT plans when there is no infrastructure and no Goans to man these grand plans? The environment is a big concern. Not just for us humans. What about the silent creatures of the earth? Level a hill for an airport with no concern for the butterflies, the birds, and the wildlife. Are we fair to rob cows of their grazing grounds? Do we dream that our pollution will give us fish in our rivers in ten years? Can we not see that we have placed factories on grazing land and now sacred cows forage in garbage piles? Disgraceful. Disrespect for religious animals as well. Disrespect for our children as they will never see the Goa we enjoyed.
Another consideration is how long Goa will stay flavour of the country and of the world at large. Tourists flocked to the south of France, then Ibiza, later the Algarve, now South America. Goa is the latest trend. But for how long? We should recall that the boom in tourism for Goa began with the LTTE problem in Sri Lanka. It is then that charters shifted to the safer holiday destination Goa so easily became. We must accept that we will be surpassed by Assam or Meghalaya, and other nearby countries on the globe. In a few years it will not be so chic to own a home or apartment in Goa. Fashionable dictates will drive people elsewhere.
What happens then? More concrete skeletons and a cheaper tourist? My greatest fear is that if there is no plan in place,Goa may lose out on its biggest earner—tourism. Goa enjoys a reputation (sullied too often in the recent past) for being a tourist destination. With the excessive development rate, tourism will suffer.
The only solution is to plan for Goa. Install a core group of people who can plan for the state with no personal gain for themselves. We need development in terms of infrastructure, jobs and social welfare. The future of Goa’s financial situation should be long term. Not a shortterm scheme which cannot sustain itself after a mere five years.
One of the lasting impressions of living in the Western world is how politicians and world leaders leave behind a cultural, architectural or social legacy. Mitterrand left behind a great library and a modern Arche de la Defense. Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy left an airport in her husband’s name. Closer home we associate Pratapsingh Rane with the Kala Academy and Manohar Parrikar for starting IFFI.
The chief minister and his MLAs should discuss a 20-year-plan of future direction and in what condition Goa should be in the next century. One of the problems most Indian states face is the lack of a concrete plan for the future. The planning commission apparently does no planning.
It is simply a body that accepts budget requests from various ministries and passes them onto the Centre (with no input whatsoever). Our needs will change each month. But if things are planned well, it will be an administrative coup. To foolishly imagine that a two-lane highway must become four lanes and then eight lanes and then ten lanes... Is it not wiser to keep the two lanes in place and figure out ways and means to control traffic?
The “shifting of the goal posts” must stop.We need to decide what is the maximum population we can sustain, how much of Goa will be green, the social, cultural and economic future of villages and cities.When one does a study of areas that need planning, one realizes, ironically, that there is a ministry for each concern. Power, health, PWD, environment, culture, education, tourism, home and agriculture.What would be ideal is if each minister is allotted a budget to spend but is held accountable, like in a business enterprise.At the moment, it is all about spending a budget or requesting a budget. How about if the budget is sanctioned and a return with interest stipulated in a set time frame? It is only then that there will be total accountability and not a waste of public money.
In areas where the government has handed out contracts to private sectors, they have enjoyed success for both parties. If the ministries of municipal administration, panchayats, PWD, environment, tourism and the chief minister (who are all affected by the garbage management issue) solicit and grant to a private contractor with a track record for success the task of waste collection, the garbage problem will vanish. There is a lot to be done. And developed. When trust is in place and all Goans are responsible for the collective development of Goa, it will lead to progress.
Who says Goa does not need development? It is the need of the hour!
Montag, 28. Juni 2010
Samstag, 26. Juni 2010
What the Portuguese could not destroy in 451 years....
Paradise lost, in just 50 years of independence
from TOI Jun 25, 2010,
Many, many years ago, when we were young, we would roam freely in Margao, or ride around the villages to while away our time. The atmosphere was clean, the air we breathed pure, the scenery eye-catching.Open spaces were aplenty, with vast expanses of greenery.
Yet, back home at night,we often exclaimed: “Goa after 9pm looks like a cemetery. If this was Los Angeles or Europe, there would be so much development!” We longed for what we didn’t have. Then came Goa’s liberation and with it, development... a sea of illconceived development in which we are now drowning.
First came the big hoteliers who bought large stretches of our coast from Goans themselves, who were too eager to sell their properties for the attractive sums of money they got. Then came the Delhiwallahs with hard cash and again Goans were only too willing to part with ancestral property and large stretches of land in exchange of short-lived wealth. Some Goenkars migrated, others invested in fixed deposits. Nobody thought of investing in something worthwhile that would keep future generations happy in Goa. Successive governments (MGP, BJP, Congress and the coalitions) rose to power, only to loot and plunder Goa. Soon things got into a fast-forward mode. “Development” monsters came haunting us... IFFI, Regional Plan 2011, SEZs, sports city,Mopa international airport and the Panaji-Vasco sea link. All 40 MLAs keep colluding to make the most of their hidden agendas: “self-development”programmes meant to line their own pockets (with a zero plan for social development).
One classic case of ill-conceived development in Goa is the housing development scheme—otherwise a basic need of humankind. The world over, every government promotes housing schemes to provide more and better housing amenities to its citizens. The average Goan needed some help to improve his living conditions. But he was betrayed. Under the pretext of development, Goan politicians have exploited mega housing to further their nefarious agenda. What’s more, as their abominable tactics help create migrant vote banks, Goans are shown the door. It is not surprising that clearances to such housing projects are being scandalously issued without application of prevailing rules and regulations. The new mantra is: “Construct first, infrastructure later” (which means never). The promise of better infrastructure remains a pipe dream. It is money that rules the roost today. Clandestine deals are struck with huge kickbacks to politicians and their coterie.Moneyed builders from all over the world thrive here on illegalities. They easily manage to get agricultural land, forest areas and land debarred under CRZ regulations “converted”.
Mega projects, where Goans can’t even dream of securing a job or finding a roof over their heads, raise their ugly heads overnight. Every piece of our land is being fraudulently secured by outsiders. Our landscape and demographic balance has tilted radically. What the Portuguese could not destroy in 451 years is being frittered away in less than 50 years of our “independence”. With eyes set on filthy lucre and short term gains, we have lost so much that was precious and dear to us. Like the destruction of our coastline. More than 10% of the 105 kilometre (65 mile) coastline is congested with haphazard, unauthorized “development”... overflowing sewage, water shortage, contaminated groundwater, coastal erosion and congestion. (Perhaps it is not an irony that the previous tourism minister himself had to go underground). Mining pollution continues to play havoc with the environment. In villages, rivers run dry, wells have no water and mining rejects spill over into local fields.What is more frightening is the mafia that has sprung into illegal mining. The last nail in Goa’s coffin is the non-stop land acquisitions under the pretext of development—“land grabs”.
Acquisitions are made for one purpose and later the land is used for entirely different purposes. Goans have woken up to the reality that the sudden mushrooming of slums and concrete buildings in acquired lands has social, cultural and psychological consequences, which may not be evident to the casual observer. The loss of physical, social and cultural characteristics of the Goan identity is a serious matter today. It poses a threat to Goan identity. To the time-honoured traditions and cultural background of the original natives. Our little piece of paradise is being destroyed.Greedy politicians that we ourselves elect time and again permit distorted “development” to be transplanted into Goan soil. Development which kills the soul of a people. Goa does not need the model of development which has proven to be a failure elsewhere.What we need is socially cohesive, sustainable and, above all, a morally sound model of “development”. Wishful thinking? Perhaps. Yet hope springs eternal in the human breast.
from TOI Jun 25, 2010,
Many, many years ago, when we were young, we would roam freely in Margao, or ride around the villages to while away our time. The atmosphere was clean, the air we breathed pure, the scenery eye-catching.Open spaces were aplenty, with vast expanses of greenery.
Yet, back home at night,we often exclaimed: “Goa after 9pm looks like a cemetery. If this was Los Angeles or Europe, there would be so much development!” We longed for what we didn’t have. Then came Goa’s liberation and with it, development... a sea of illconceived development in which we are now drowning.
First came the big hoteliers who bought large stretches of our coast from Goans themselves, who were too eager to sell their properties for the attractive sums of money they got. Then came the Delhiwallahs with hard cash and again Goans were only too willing to part with ancestral property and large stretches of land in exchange of short-lived wealth. Some Goenkars migrated, others invested in fixed deposits. Nobody thought of investing in something worthwhile that would keep future generations happy in Goa. Successive governments (MGP, BJP, Congress and the coalitions) rose to power, only to loot and plunder Goa. Soon things got into a fast-forward mode. “Development” monsters came haunting us... IFFI, Regional Plan 2011, SEZs, sports city,Mopa international airport and the Panaji-Vasco sea link. All 40 MLAs keep colluding to make the most of their hidden agendas: “self-development”programmes meant to line their own pockets (with a zero plan for social development).
One classic case of ill-conceived development in Goa is the housing development scheme—otherwise a basic need of humankind. The world over, every government promotes housing schemes to provide more and better housing amenities to its citizens. The average Goan needed some help to improve his living conditions. But he was betrayed. Under the pretext of development, Goan politicians have exploited mega housing to further their nefarious agenda. What’s more, as their abominable tactics help create migrant vote banks, Goans are shown the door. It is not surprising that clearances to such housing projects are being scandalously issued without application of prevailing rules and regulations. The new mantra is: “Construct first, infrastructure later” (which means never). The promise of better infrastructure remains a pipe dream. It is money that rules the roost today. Clandestine deals are struck with huge kickbacks to politicians and their coterie.Moneyed builders from all over the world thrive here on illegalities. They easily manage to get agricultural land, forest areas and land debarred under CRZ regulations “converted”.
Mega projects, where Goans can’t even dream of securing a job or finding a roof over their heads, raise their ugly heads overnight. Every piece of our land is being fraudulently secured by outsiders. Our landscape and demographic balance has tilted radically. What the Portuguese could not destroy in 451 years is being frittered away in less than 50 years of our “independence”. With eyes set on filthy lucre and short term gains, we have lost so much that was precious and dear to us. Like the destruction of our coastline. More than 10% of the 105 kilometre (65 mile) coastline is congested with haphazard, unauthorized “development”... overflowing sewage, water shortage, contaminated groundwater, coastal erosion and congestion. (Perhaps it is not an irony that the previous tourism minister himself had to go underground). Mining pollution continues to play havoc with the environment. In villages, rivers run dry, wells have no water and mining rejects spill over into local fields.What is more frightening is the mafia that has sprung into illegal mining. The last nail in Goa’s coffin is the non-stop land acquisitions under the pretext of development—“land grabs”.
Acquisitions are made for one purpose and later the land is used for entirely different purposes. Goans have woken up to the reality that the sudden mushrooming of slums and concrete buildings in acquired lands has social, cultural and psychological consequences, which may not be evident to the casual observer. The loss of physical, social and cultural characteristics of the Goan identity is a serious matter today. It poses a threat to Goan identity. To the time-honoured traditions and cultural background of the original natives. Our little piece of paradise is being destroyed.Greedy politicians that we ourselves elect time and again permit distorted “development” to be transplanted into Goan soil. Development which kills the soul of a people. Goa does not need the model of development which has proven to be a failure elsewhere.What we need is socially cohesive, sustainable and, above all, a morally sound model of “development”. Wishful thinking? Perhaps. Yet hope springs eternal in the human breast.
Montag, 21. Juni 2010
Green India Mission is not business as usual,
...says Jairam
by Amruta Byatnal, The Hindu, 20th June, 2010
Public consultation in Pune
Pune: “Green India Mission is not business as usual. If that is the case, we will be playing with people's sentiments. This is about improving our mental outlook. It is an opportunity to bring about change,” Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh, said at the outset of the third national public consultation of the National Mission for a Green India here on Saturday.
“We will not go into how things have been done in the last 50 years. This is going to be different. We seek to bring about a change in the relationship between the people and the forest department. We will ensure transparency and a system of social audits,” he added.
Having come to the city after their visit to Guwahati and Visakhapatnam, the Minister and the members of the core committee interacted with activists and citizens, sharing suggestions and grievances. The national consultations will be held in four more cities: Dehradun, Bhopal, Jaipur and Mysore, after which a final draft of the Mission will be prepared in August. Organisations and individuals from all over Maharashtra participated, suggesting ways to make the Mission a success.
The Mission is a part of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), aiming to increase the forest cover in the country by 10 million hectares by 2020 and enhance eco-system services in a holistic manner.
BMS Rathore, a core group member, laid down the means by which the Environment Ministry sought to achieve the mission: strengthening local community institutions and the capacity of the forest department, improving investment climate for planting and forest conservation and monitoring at outcome levels. A number of propositions were presented to the Minister through the day. Citizens brought up the questions of livelihood security, proper use of funds and the issue of de-greening vs. greening. Vishwambhar Choudhari, of Oasis Environmental Foundation, which is a part of the National Alliance of People's Movement (NAPM), said that although the Mission was concentrating on ‘greening' the country, it should not be forgotten that ‘de-greening' through afforestation is also resulting in a loss of forest cover. “Taking the example of Lavasa City that has cut hundreds of trees and not got any clearance from the Environment Ministry, we should look into such matters before planting more trees,” he added.
Replying to that, Mr. Ramesh said, “We all know how and why Lavasa happened. If there are any mistakes made by the Central government I will rectify them.”
Ecologist Madhav Gadgil suggested that a ‘Community Forest Reserve' should be created and people's participation should be encouraged. Furthermore, from the two lakh villages with forest cover, two crore hectares of land could be used for the Mission. Economist Anita Beninger said that the Mission should aim at integrating the Ministry of Urban Development in the plan. She also suggested the development of local carbon markets that could trade among themselves.
Environmental activist Ashish Kothari stressed that ‘Gram sabhas' should be the deciding authority on the land. “Urban greening and preservation of wetlands is very important. Apart from that, agro forestry should not be carried out on food lands,” he added. On the question of funds, he said that “mechanisms that will make sure that the money is spent where it should be spent and by whom it should be spent” should be put in place
Sampat Kale, a faculty member at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), said the mangroves in Maharashtra should be taken care of, as they were being endangered by the Special Economic Zones (SEZs). . Experts and activists took up the cause of the grasslands. Only if they are restored, the Great Indian Bustard can have its habitat back, they said.
Shriram Gamarkar, member of the organisation, Vanrai, said the power of the youth should be used to the fullest.
Responding to queries, Mr. Ramesh said that in three years, three to four forestry satellites would be launched, and this would help monitoring the programmes on a day-to-day basis.
On the land to be forested, citizens said if the Mission were to be advertised as a ‘people's programme,' it should deal with the ownership issue with sensitivity.
by Amruta Byatnal, The Hindu, 20th June, 2010
Public consultation in Pune
Pune: “Green India Mission is not business as usual. If that is the case, we will be playing with people's sentiments. This is about improving our mental outlook. It is an opportunity to bring about change,” Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh, said at the outset of the third national public consultation of the National Mission for a Green India here on Saturday.
“We will not go into how things have been done in the last 50 years. This is going to be different. We seek to bring about a change in the relationship between the people and the forest department. We will ensure transparency and a system of social audits,” he added.
Having come to the city after their visit to Guwahati and Visakhapatnam, the Minister and the members of the core committee interacted with activists and citizens, sharing suggestions and grievances. The national consultations will be held in four more cities: Dehradun, Bhopal, Jaipur and Mysore, after which a final draft of the Mission will be prepared in August. Organisations and individuals from all over Maharashtra participated, suggesting ways to make the Mission a success.
The Mission is a part of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), aiming to increase the forest cover in the country by 10 million hectares by 2020 and enhance eco-system services in a holistic manner.
BMS Rathore, a core group member, laid down the means by which the Environment Ministry sought to achieve the mission: strengthening local community institutions and the capacity of the forest department, improving investment climate for planting and forest conservation and monitoring at outcome levels. A number of propositions were presented to the Minister through the day. Citizens brought up the questions of livelihood security, proper use of funds and the issue of de-greening vs. greening. Vishwambhar Choudhari, of Oasis Environmental Foundation, which is a part of the National Alliance of People's Movement (NAPM), said that although the Mission was concentrating on ‘greening' the country, it should not be forgotten that ‘de-greening' through afforestation is also resulting in a loss of forest cover. “Taking the example of Lavasa City that has cut hundreds of trees and not got any clearance from the Environment Ministry, we should look into such matters before planting more trees,” he added.
Replying to that, Mr. Ramesh said, “We all know how and why Lavasa happened. If there are any mistakes made by the Central government I will rectify them.”
Ecologist Madhav Gadgil suggested that a ‘Community Forest Reserve' should be created and people's participation should be encouraged. Furthermore, from the two lakh villages with forest cover, two crore hectares of land could be used for the Mission. Economist Anita Beninger said that the Mission should aim at integrating the Ministry of Urban Development in the plan. She also suggested the development of local carbon markets that could trade among themselves.
Environmental activist Ashish Kothari stressed that ‘Gram sabhas' should be the deciding authority on the land. “Urban greening and preservation of wetlands is very important. Apart from that, agro forestry should not be carried out on food lands,” he added. On the question of funds, he said that “mechanisms that will make sure that the money is spent where it should be spent and by whom it should be spent” should be put in place
Sampat Kale, a faculty member at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), said the mangroves in Maharashtra should be taken care of, as they were being endangered by the Special Economic Zones (SEZs). . Experts and activists took up the cause of the grasslands. Only if they are restored, the Great Indian Bustard can have its habitat back, they said.
Shriram Gamarkar, member of the organisation, Vanrai, said the power of the youth should be used to the fullest.
Responding to queries, Mr. Ramesh said that in three years, three to four forestry satellites would be launched, and this would help monitoring the programmes on a day-to-day basis.
On the land to be forested, citizens said if the Mission were to be advertised as a ‘people's programme,' it should deal with the ownership issue with sensitivity.
Dienstag, 15. Juni 2010
Organic Cotton versus BT cotton
Organic farming gives Indian farmers greater financial security
June 15, 2010
(from: http://www.greenpeace.org/india/press/releases/organic-farming-gives-indian-f )
Hyderabad, India — A Greenpeace report released today said the monetary benefits of organic cotton farming are much greater than using the Genetically Engineered variety that makes farmers more vulnerable to financial collapse due to high debts and increased costs of cultivation. The report titled “Picking Cotton - The choice between organic and genetically-engineered cotton for farmers in South India’ shows that in the year 2009-10 farmers cultivating cotton through organic practices earned 200% more net income than farmers who grew Genetically Engineered cotton [Bt cotton].
The Greenpeace report is a comparative analysis of two methods of agriculture among cotton farmers in Andhra Pradesh. It not only shows the economic benefit of ecological farming (in this case organic) but also that Genetically Engineered (GE) cotton, despite using many toxic pesticides, still has greater crop loss to pests.
“Our study illustrates how farmers growing GE cotton face high debts and high costs of cultivation, becoming more vulnerable to financial collapses”, said Dr Reyes Tirado, Scientist, Greenpeace International, who authored the report.
Bt cotton1 farmers not only use 26 different pesticides, including pesticides targeting pests that the GE cotton is supposed to control, but also lose financially due to their higher input costs.
In the region of Andhra Pradesh the cost of cultivation is much higher for Bt cotton farmers. The Bt cotton farmers incurred 65% higher debt –accumulated during 2008/09 and 2009/10– than the non-Bt organic cotton farmers.
The farmer distress in the state had lead to the central government announcing a 5 year relief package for farmers amounting to 20,000 crores in the year 2008.
“It is preposterous that on the one hand government dolls out thousands of crores in the name of bringing relief to farmers while on the other they permit and promote Bt cotton cultivation and ensure that the farmer can never escape the debt treadmill.” said Dr G.V Ramanjaneyalu, Executive Director of Centre for Sustainable Agriculture who was present at the report release.
The controversies around Bt cotton have finally forced the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, the agency responsible for the commercial release of GE crops in the country, to do a review of its performance since 2002, the year it was released.
“Bt cotton has only benefitted the multinational seed giants like Monsanto who has earned 1580 crore Rupees as royalty from its patented Bt cotton seed since its release” [1] said Rajesh Krishnan, sustainable agriculture campaigner with Greenpeace India. He concluded that “Cotton farming that uses ecological practices and avoids genetically engineered seeds and agrochemicals is the most beneficial for Indian farmers”,
Greenpeace is demanding that the Indian government bans Bt cotton cultivation, takes an active role in supplying sufficient quantity and quality of non-Bt seeds and supports organic and ecological cotton farming.
June 15, 2010
(from: http://www.greenpeace.org/india/press/releases/organic-farming-gives-indian-f )
Hyderabad, India — A Greenpeace report released today said the monetary benefits of organic cotton farming are much greater than using the Genetically Engineered variety that makes farmers more vulnerable to financial collapse due to high debts and increased costs of cultivation. The report titled “Picking Cotton - The choice between organic and genetically-engineered cotton for farmers in South India’ shows that in the year 2009-10 farmers cultivating cotton through organic practices earned 200% more net income than farmers who grew Genetically Engineered cotton [Bt cotton].
The Greenpeace report is a comparative analysis of two methods of agriculture among cotton farmers in Andhra Pradesh. It not only shows the economic benefit of ecological farming (in this case organic) but also that Genetically Engineered (GE) cotton, despite using many toxic pesticides, still has greater crop loss to pests.
“Our study illustrates how farmers growing GE cotton face high debts and high costs of cultivation, becoming more vulnerable to financial collapses”, said Dr Reyes Tirado, Scientist, Greenpeace International, who authored the report.
Bt cotton1 farmers not only use 26 different pesticides, including pesticides targeting pests that the GE cotton is supposed to control, but also lose financially due to their higher input costs.
In the region of Andhra Pradesh the cost of cultivation is much higher for Bt cotton farmers. The Bt cotton farmers incurred 65% higher debt –accumulated during 2008/09 and 2009/10– than the non-Bt organic cotton farmers.
The farmer distress in the state had lead to the central government announcing a 5 year relief package for farmers amounting to 20,000 crores in the year 2008.
“It is preposterous that on the one hand government dolls out thousands of crores in the name of bringing relief to farmers while on the other they permit and promote Bt cotton cultivation and ensure that the farmer can never escape the debt treadmill.” said Dr G.V Ramanjaneyalu, Executive Director of Centre for Sustainable Agriculture who was present at the report release.
The controversies around Bt cotton have finally forced the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, the agency responsible for the commercial release of GE crops in the country, to do a review of its performance since 2002, the year it was released.
“Bt cotton has only benefitted the multinational seed giants like Monsanto who has earned 1580 crore Rupees as royalty from its patented Bt cotton seed since its release” [1] said Rajesh Krishnan, sustainable agriculture campaigner with Greenpeace India. He concluded that “Cotton farming that uses ecological practices and avoids genetically engineered seeds and agrochemicals is the most beneficial for Indian farmers”,
Greenpeace is demanding that the Indian government bans Bt cotton cultivation, takes an active role in supplying sufficient quantity and quality of non-Bt seeds and supports organic and ecological cotton farming.
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