NGO disputes claim on productivity and Bt cotton link

Hyderabad, Jan 3 (UNI) The Coalition for GM-Free India, spearheading a movement against Bt cotton, today called 'false and convenient,' claims by the Bt cotton industry and its supporters that the rise in production and productivity were attributable to the increasing adoption of Bt cotton in the country.

Growth in Indian cotton production and productivity had fluctuated even before the introduction of Bt Cotton and had shown impressive improvement in several years. For instance, productivity had grown by 10.8 per cent over the previous year, even in 2001-02, when no Bt cotton was allowed in the country, it said.

In 2003-04, when Bt Cotton cultivation constituted a mere 1.3 per cent of total cotton extent, the highest increase in productivity, upto 26.3 per cent was seen, the NGO said in a release here today.

If more Bt Cotton cultivation led to productivity rise, there should be a steady growth in the rate of production and yield per hectare in the country (given that Bt cotton area increases were shown to be 2.6 times more than the previous year in 2005-06 and 2006-07).

While Bt Cotton was projected to be around 40 per cent of all cotton cultivation in the country in 2006-07, up from around 15 per cent in the earlier year, production had increased by only two per cent to touch 250 lakh bales from 244 lakh bales last year. The area increases were projected at 2.6 times more than the previous year, in 2005-06 and 2006-07, it said.

UNI