Indian scientist develops GM cotton read more at here www.spinonews.com/index.php/item/781-indian-scientist-develops-gm-cotton

An Indian scientist Deepak Pental and his colleagues at the Delhi University worked on GM (genetically modified)mustard for around a decade that is leading towards a possible commercial launch said he could soon hand to a state agency a GM cotton variety that can rival Monsanto's seeds.

St. Louis, Missouri-based Monsanto dominates India's GM cotton market, but is embroiled in a high strong battle with the government which wants the company to cut the royalty it charges for its technology.

Apart from a proposal that will make the seed giant share its technology with local firms.

New Delhi-based Pental said he was willing to help the government with that goal and would approach the state-run Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to pass on a laboratory-tested GM cotton variety his team has developed over the past decade.

The variety is similar to Monsanto's Bt cotton but can be more resistant to pests, Pental said, adding he handed another GM cotton variety to ICAR last year for further research.

No field trial has yet been done on either cotton strands. This comes at a time when Monsanto has withdrawn an application to sell its next-generation cotton seeds

Protesting the Modi government's proposal to force it to share its technology with local seed companies, which has also worried other foreign firms such as Bayer, Dow, Dupont Pioneer and Syngenta.

Experts warn that even if India did develop a home-grown GM cotton variety in the next few years, it would struggle to sustain a programme that needs to refresh seeds every decade or so.

The move has been opposed by activists and politicians amid fears GM food could compromise food safety and biodiversity. Some experts have also questioned claims that GM crops are more productive than normal varieties.