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Field report

  • 14/10/2002

Field report I happened to be in Hirekur taluk in Haveri district of Karnataka to attend an Independence Day flag hoisting function this year. Farmers dominated the gathering. Not surprisingly, all talk seemed centred around the Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) cotton experiment in the state. Pleased with my evident interest in their talk, the farmers invited me to see their Bt cotton. I promptly took them up on their offer, and gathered my colleagues in Hope Foundation to tour these fields.

We were clear about how we wished to set about this study. We would tour the fields randomly, and work without bias. All we wanted to do was arrive at an understanding of how Bt cotton is faring in cultivation. But when my colleagues and I landed in Hirekur, we found farmers whispering worriedly among themselves. They seemed convinced that we were part of MD Nanjundaswamy's Karnataka Rajya Ryota Sangha, and that we would uproot their Bt cotton crop at his behest! It took some convincing to reassure them that we had nothing to do with the Sangha, and that we were merely impartial observers.

The Genetic Engineering Action Committee (geac) had approved the release of Mahyco's Bt cotton mech 12 and mech 162 in June 2002. Mahyco lost no time in selling its seeds all over Karnataka. By and large, seed dealers have sold mech 162

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