Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of In Re: News Item Titled "Neglected Katora Houz in Hyderabad’s Golconda Fort Cries for attention appearing in ‘The Siasat Daily’ dated 25 May 2025". The application was registered suo-motu based on the news item titled “Neglected Katora Houz in Hyderabad’s …
The high demand for frogs’ legs for consumption leads to the extinction of the species, says a report by international wildlife conservation groups. The report titled ‘Canapés to Extinction: The international trade in frogs’ legs and its ecological impact’ is the first ever rstudy on the frog leg market.
It is time to update decades-old regulation of genetically engineered crops. (Editorial) http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v475/n7356/full/475265b.html
Agronomic intensification has transformed many agricultural landscapes into expansive monocultures with little natural habitat. A pervasive concern is that such landscape simplification results in an increase in insect pest pressure, and thus an increased need for insecticides. We tested this hypothesis across a range of cropping systems in the Midwestern …
The ladybird beetle, Coleomegilla maculata (DeGeer), is a common and abundant predator in many cropping systems. Its larvae and adults are predaceous, feeding on aphids, thrips, lepidopteran larvae and plant tissues, such as pollen. Therefore, this species is exposed to insecticidal proteins expressed in insect-resistant, genetically engineered cotton expressing Cry …
This article studies the development of the Non-Pesticidal Management Project (NPM) that emerged in the late 1980s in Andhra Pradesh's Warangal district of the semi-arid region Telengana as a response to accumulating agrarian distress, when chemical pesticides did not help to counter massive pest infestations.
Entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and its toxins have been extensively used for pest control in agriculture and forestry and in public health programmes since the 1930s. At the core of such application are protein crystals that get synthesised when Bt cells develop spores. The proteins called Cry (from Crystal) …
Fitness costs of resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) crops occur in the absence of Bt toxins, when individuals with resistance alleles are less fit than individuals without resistance alleles. As costs of Bt resistance are common, refuges of non-Bt host plants can delay resistance not only by providing susceptible individuals …
District-level squad formed to implement ban strictly. KATTAPPANA: The district administration will intensify checking on the border routes and plantation areas to counter the use of endosulfan which is reportedly being brought from Tamil Nadu in bottles with fake labels. The raids in the plantation segments would continue and cases …
Centre approves field trials of 14 GM crops. But some states refuse trials, saying safety regulations are too lax. With politicians joining activists, the issue is likely to take a politically volatile turn. This special report in DTE uncovers the mess in GM crops. As India gets ready to unleash …
AT daybreak on March 11, there was a burst of activity at Litchi Lawn, a corner plot on the sprawling campus of the Pusa Institute in Bihar’s Samastipur district. Workers were uprooting the maize growing in a small patch of land close to the office, intent on finishing their work …
IT is just a 12-member body but the Agricultural Group (AG) of the Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE-Ag) must be about the most powerful lobby groups in India. Among the dozen companies are the world’s largest biotech companies— Bayer BioScience, Dow AgroSciences, Monsanto, PHI Seeds—and a clutch of rising …
LUCKNOW: The production of pulses in the country has been hit by a pest called pod borer. The common pest which attacks all pulses, chick pea, pigeon pea, gram, groundnut and lentils is a cause of worry for farmers in several states. The National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) has developed …
WHY would a company with a turnover of Rs 9,712 crore and profits of Rs 933 crore want a research loan of less than Rs 10 crore from the government? Ask the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), which has become venture capitalist to well-heeled industry. In a novel scheme that turns …
The draft document of the Contact Group takes note of the recommendations by the POPRC to list technical endosulfan, its related isomers and endosulfan sulfate in Annex A of the convention, with specific exemptions. The group is yet to deliberate on pest-crop complex and the countries that have requested for …
For many of us city-born-and-bred folks, thrills at night are restricted to sitting on a couch and watching the idiot box. For those of us who have the gumption to step out of our comfort zones and venture out for occasional night walks, a whole new world beckons. Recently, I …
The report by an Expert Committee (EC–II) and approval of Bt brinjal by the Genetic Engineering Approval (now Appraisal) Committee (GEAC) in October 2009 led to considerable public outcry and an ongoing debate.
About 1,000 farmers from across the State will be trained as 'plant doctors' at a three-day training beginning Thursday, in Chitradurga. The programme, funded by the Agriculture Department and the Bio-control Research Laboratories (BCRL) and supported by the Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International (CABI), aims to create a pool of …
