Monsanto is not Gandhi: Activist

New Delhi: As incidents of illegal cultivation of Bt Brinjal in Haryana came into notice, noted environmentalist Vandana Shiva has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar to take action against Monsanto for violating biosafety, biodiversity and environment protection laws of the country by promoting the cultivation of a banned variety of brinjal.

Shiva has apprised PM Modi and both the concerned ministers through a letter stating that Monsanto is not Gandhi and crimes against

nature and society are not 'Satyagraha'.

Citing the earlier incidents, Shiva, in her letter, said, "After a series of seven public hearings on Bt brinjal on February 9, 2010, the then Union MoS for Environment had announced an indefinite moratorium on the introduction of Bt Brinjal."

Demanding strict against the violators, Shiva said, "Bt crops like Bt Cotton and Bt Brinjal has a gene for producing a toxin inserted in the genome of the plant, thus producing the toxin in every cell all the time. Given that genetically modified crops cause great harm to biodiversity, the culprits must be booked

under the Environment Protection Act 1986 that mandates 5-year jail term for norm violations."

"The impact of Bt Brinjal would be wider in comparison to Bt Cotton as Bt Brinjal is a food crop and its consumption would have worse effects on public health. Also, there is no independent research that proves that Bt Brinjal is safe," Shiva further stated.