For Punjab Bt-less farmers, help is a phone call, a shady deal away

At present, only Mahyco’s three hybrids — most suited to central and southern India — have been granted approval after stringent trials over three years.

Any other company would need to go through trials and then have their case examined by the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC).

As the government sits on approving Mech 915, this farmer could have found a tailor-made situation to strike gold.

He’s hoping innocent farmers in Punjab and Haryana who are deprived of the seed this season would fall for his glib advertisement.

In Patel’s case, these rules have fallen on deaf ears. Instead, he has even quoted the Seed Act 1966 (section 44), which allows sale of seeds between farmers and he quotes it at the bottom of his ad.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Patel presented his skewed logic to justify his business plans: ‘‘If I live in Gujarat and go to Shimla, I will not die, so the same way these seeds developed in Gujarat will grow.’’ Talking of Monsanto, he says: ‘‘They are not the only company to have developed these, there are 18 others.’’

He also clarifies that these are not the Navbharat seeds which had been found thriving in Gujarat last season before the approval came in.

Listing his cotton’s virtues, he says it is an improved variety produced by farmers, without terminator and re-usable next year for farming.

However, it comes with conditions: One farmer would only get five packets, the seeds will only be given on the basis of experience which the farmer has and dealers will not be sold any seeds.

There are three mobile numbers which farmers can call and money can be sent by money order or draft to a Bt cotton trial farm in Vadodara.

The 500 gram pouch for one acre is priced at Rs 555. Incidently, the same would be for close to Rs 1,000 by Mahyco.

Patel thinks he is doing nothing wrong. ‘‘Monsanto gave wrong seeds to the Punjab Agricultural University, so they were not approved, but that does not mean that the farmers of the country should suffer,’’ he said.

According to him, farmers in Gujarat have already grown the seed for one season last year and have found it good. It’s time, he says, that Punjab farmers who’ve been deprived be assisted. With his three cellphones ringing constantly, he now has become a little more guarded: He asks the caller to send his address, so that detailed information can be posted individually to the farmers.