*Seed bodies sound alert on suspicious seed entry into India* https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/nsai-asks-centre-to-watch-out-for-chinese-seed-terrorism/article32257758.ece
Says China’s advanced biotechnology could pose a threat to Indian food security The National Seed Association of India (NSAI) wants the Centre to put its agencies on high alert against Chinese seeds penetrating into Indian fields. It has asked the government to have in place adequate plans to deal with the ‘seed terrorism’. Indian biodiversity is fragile and could be overturned with seed contamination, said the association. “Chinese and other international companies have detailed studies of the germplasm and genetic resources in India. In fact, China is studying Indian germplasm and seeds for the last 20-25 years and taking a hybrid parent line back to China. Indian germplasm is being exported without any hindrance,” Indra Shekhar Singh, Director-Policy and Outreach, NSAI, told BusinessLine. He added that Indian companies cannot set up a seed company in China and but Chinese companies can do so in India. No foreign seeds can be imported into India without government approval but this is being bypassed, he further said. “Such seed terrorism could create a threat to food security. China has much-advanced biotechnology and has the capacity to destroy Indian food production. The NSAI is going to write to the government requesting it to take stringent steps to stop seed contamination,” said Singh. *Easy target?* Why India is an easy target? India now has a well-defined channel for seed contamination and Herbicide Tolerant (HT) cottonseed is an example of this. About 50 lakh packets of HT Bt cotton (about 24 lakh kg) worth ₹300 crore are in circulation in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra, according to the NSAI. Illegal HT seeds are contaminating breeding material and parent lines of the seed companies, especially those selling BG2 cotton seeds. The NSAI alert follows the International Seed Testing Association’s (ISTA) warning about the smuggling of suspicious and unrecognised (spurious) seed into the country. The ISTA has received information that people in the US have been receiving seed packets through e-commerce companies without ordering for them. These seed packets are unrecognised and have no details of origin. The NSAI plans to write to the Centre asking to put the Custom department on alert and confiscate illegal seeds coming from China or other countries. It wants courier companies and those receiving seed packets even when they have not ordered for it, to report it to the police and other government agencies. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/ista-sounds-alert-on-entry-of-suspicious-seed-into-india/article32241364.ece Farmers, seed companies cautioned about ‘seed terrorism’ The International Seed Testing Association (ISTA) has cautioned the Indian government about smuggling of suspicious and unrecognised (spurious) seed into the country through e-commerce entities following such incidents in the USA during the past one week. Director of Telangana State Seed and Organic Certification Authority (TSSOCA) K. Keshavulu, in his capacity as the vice president of ISTA, has stated that ISTA has received information that people in Washington, New York, Virginia, Florida and a few other States in the US have been receiving seed packets through e-commerce companies without ordering for them. Besides, the suspicious seed packets are unrecognised and have no details of origin. “Following the unwanted/unsolicited delivery of such suspicious seed packets for the past one week, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has cautioned people, particularly those engaged in farming, against opening such suspicious seed packets, sowing them in farms or backyards or disposing in the garbage and urged them to give information to the officials,” the ISTA vice president said explaining the US response to the unwanted seed supply in violation of customs and import regulations being termed as “brushing scam and seed terrorism” there. Mr. Keshavulu said the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), an agency of USDA, had conducted inspection in the US borders to find out about the suspicious seed illegally transported into the US had come to a conclusion that they had originated from China. The neighbouring Canada too had alerted the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CIA), its regulatory agency that safeguards food, plants and animals and works for enhancing the health and well-being of the country’s people, environment and economy, to be cautious against entry of such suspicious seed into the country. Stating that such suspicious seed supply would have threats not only for the food security but also on environment and human health, the ISTA vice president said such seeds carry the threat of pest attacks and poisonous weeds with them harming the entire ecosystem of agriculture. Along with ISTA several international seed agencies have also become alert about the entry of such suspicious seed into the supply-chains and have decided to caution the stakeholders. On its part, the ISTA would officially take the issue to the notice of the Indian government soon, Mr. Keshavulu said. In his capacity as Director of TSSOCA and Managing Director of Telangana State Seed Development Corporation (TSSDC) Mr. Keshavulu requested farmers and seed companies in the State to inform officials immediately in case they come across such suspicious seed packets. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/greenyouth/CAPpKBbp4Qwk25cz%2Bx60U9tFwQzg3FCB9kTcib_kV_g2i_wrsqg%40mail.gmail.com.
