Want Central, State agencies to take action to stop cultivation, investigate spread of the illegal variety Genetically modified (GM) brinjal is being illegally grown in the Fatehabad district of Haryana, according to anti-GM activists. On Thursday, they demanded that Central and State regulatory agencies immediately take action to stop the cultivation, investigate the spread of the illegal variety and destroy all such crops, seeds and saplings as dangerous biohazards entering the food chain. Punitive action must be taken against seed suppliers, as well as the company which developed the GM variety, said the activists. Brinjal has been genetically modified by inserting a protein gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis to give protection against certain pests. Bt Brinjal, which was developed in India by Maharashtra-based seed company Mahyco, was on the verge of becoming India’s first GM food crop, when the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee cleared it for commercialisation in 2009, before doubts about the long-term impact on consumer health and plant biodiversity led the then Environment Minister, Jairam Ramesh, to slap an indefinite moratorium on the crop. When asked about the reports of illegal cultivation of Bt Brinjal in Haryana, a Mahyco spokesperson said the company could not respond until Friday. Biohazard contamination “This is a biohazard contamination and must be treated seriously,” said Rajinder Chaudhary, an activist with the Kudarti Kheti Abhiyan, Haryana, detailing how the Bt Brinjal was found on a half-acre plot in Fatehabad, a few hours drive from the national capital. He demonstrated the strip test that showed the vegetable has been genetically modified and added that samples have been shown to the Agriculture and Horticulture departments of the Haryana government and sent to the GEAC as well. “This is clearly a failure of concerned government agencies that illegal Bt brinjal is being cultivated in the country. GEAC is full of vested interests and behaves as a promotional body rather than a regulator,” said Kapil Shah, an activist associated with the Coalition for a GM-Free India. He pointed out that regulators have previously turned a blind eye to the illegal cultivation of GM cotton and soyabean and demanded that Mahyco be held responsible for any leakage of seeds. “Remember that Bt cotton may be legal now, but it was first introduced into the country illegally. Even now, HT [or herbicide tolerant] cotton is grown across lakhs of hectares and the grey market is worth Rs. 1 crore,” said Mr. Shah. Bt Cotton was developed and sold in India by a joint venture between Mahyco and global GM giant Monsanto, which also developed HT cotton until the trial stage before withdrawing it from India in 2016. A Mahyco Monsanto Biotech (India) spokesperson told The Hindu that it has complained repeatedly to GEAC about the spread of illegal HT cotton in India. “Even in August 2017, we sought [GEAC] intervention on the gross misuse of patented and regulated technologies which may pose numerous other challenges to India’s cotton ecosystem,” said the spokesperson.