What I understand is most of the seeds sold (>90% volumes) are BG II version which is “seems” to be patented by Monsanto and most news articles continue to talk only about BG I.
First post article – Copying some text from the news
Quote: Monsanto India’s CEO Shilpa Divekar Nirula says in “assessment less than five percent” of Bt cottonseed used in India has the off-patent gene. The rest is Bollgard II, which “offers a broader spectrum of control” as it has two insecticidal proteins. This ‘event’ was approved for commercial release in 2006. Currently, Mahyco-Monsanto is conducting trials on Bollgard III, which has a combination of three Bt genes, but the one immediately in the pipeline is a seed with both insect resistance (Bt) and herbicide tolerance.
“Labour and the availability of labour at specific times in the crop cycle is becoming increasingly challenging,” says Nirula. Though wages rates have moderated of late and commodity prices have fallen, “they are trending upwards,” she says. Earlier, weeding was done manually but “a lot of times we find farmers leaving weeds in the field.”
Labour cost is the biggest component in the cost of cotton cultivation, according to the official national sample survey.
“We spend a lot on weeding and on spraying chemicals,” says Rustam Jamaluddin Turak of village Selsura in Wardha district. “We have to pay Rs 300 a day. Earlier, I used to spray myself but I am 68 years old. I did not engage labourers but now I cannot manage it and my children do not like to work on the farm.”
“We need technology that can deal with pests that curls the leaves, and kills weeds,” says Jayantibhai Gajera of village Biliyara in Rajkot district. “I heard it is going to come,” he adds.
But the attitude of state governments to agricultural biotechnology and private seeds is quite unhelpful. Instead of getting out of the way when not part of the solution, they have become part of the problem.
