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Report on
Accelerated Agricultural Progress and Poverty Elimination in Jharkhand,
2008
Professor MS Swaminathan,
MP,
Ms Mabel Rebello,MP and Dr Suman Sahai,
President Gene Campaign,
visited Jharkhand at the invitation of the state
government, from Dec 19-22,2007, to study the agricultural situation and
make suggestions for using accelerated agricultural development for
poverty alleviation. Districts of Gumla and Simdega were chosen for
intensive study since more than 85% of the total workforce there is
engaged in agriculture and over 76% of the population is below the poverty
line. After extensive consultations with officials,
scientists, farm
workers and civil society organizations the experts put forward their
suggestions in a report on 'Accelerated Agricultural Progress and
Poverty Elimination in Jharkhand, 2008'. The report was presented to
the Govt of Jharkhand, which has responded very positively to it.
Read More…..
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Exchange
visit for Jharkhand farmers organized by Gene Campaign
The intensive use of chemical
fertilizers and pesticides over the past
fifty years have degraded the ground water soil and environment in many
states of
India. Gene Campaign has been trying to reverse the trend by encouraging
farmers to adopt organic farming and has been imparting training in
organic farming best practices, to farmers in Jharkhand, Bihar, UP and
Uttaranchal. Recently Gene Campaign organized a visit for ten Jharkhand
farmers to the Janhit Foundation in Meerut as part of an exchange
program to share knowledge and experiences about organic farming and its
components. Farmers shared their experiences about bioorganic nutrients,
biopesticides, as well as
producing organic seed and organic cultivation practices.
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Street Plays
,
Song and Dance Programs on Farmers Rights and GE Crops
Gene Campaign presents street plays, song and dance programs at Dilli Haat
 Gene
Campaign has been spearheading a campaign to inform and educate people
regarding biodiversity, Farmers Rights, GE foods and crops and the dangers
posed by them to our health and environment by using a variety of
communication tools. As part of this on going exercise Gene Campaign
organized a program of Songs and Dance and a Nukkad Natak to reach out to
people at the Dastkari Craft Bazaar held at Dilli Haat from November 21 to
December 3. The subject of the songs and the Nukkad Natak was
biodiversity, Farmer’s Rights and the dangers posed by GE foods and crops.
The play also stressed the importance of preserving indigenous varieties
of seeds along with indigenous knowledge which is in danger of being lost
to the world. The programme proved to be very popular for the two
weeks that it was performed and received a very enthusiastic response from
the audience. People flocked around the actors after each
performance and were full of questions. Gene Campaign also distributed
free pamphlets and info booklets to all those who were interested in
knowing more about Farmers Rights, GE foods and Biodiversity.
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The Biotech
Lobby Strikes!
Three
senior scientists working on agriculture biotechnology in Delhi have
responded to the urging of a biotech lobbyist to protest against the
recommendations of the Planning Commission Task Force on Biodiversity and
GMOs, by writing to dissociate themselves from the report.
Read more...
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Jharkhand
Field Study on Food and Livelihood Security
 Gene Campaign's Jharkhand project on food and
livelihood security is making good progress. The GC team attempts to work
in an inclusive way, its staff is diverse, incorporating ethnic and
religious minorities, backward communities and is gender sensitive. Our
literature is prepared in the local regional languages and tribal
dialects, enabling us to reach a range of people. Collaborations with
research institutions are established and field research is often being
conducted jointly.
Read
more...
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'Importing
Agricultural Produce is like Importing a Loss'
 Chairperson of the Planning Commission's Task Force
on Agro-biodiversity
and Genetically Engineered Organisms and founder of Gene Campaign, Suman
Sahai has been advocating for farmers'
rights and against the dangers of
genetically-modified (GM) crops for more than a decade. One of India’s
foremost agro-economists, Sahai feels the country should avoid buying
expensive GM seeds from global monopolistic corporations when it has the
resources to develop indigenous technology. What is required, she told
Harsha Baruah and
Swati Mongia, is to
develop a methodology to solve problems at an affordable cost and
increased agricultural research.
more....
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Workshop on Trade in GMOs:
The Implications of Labelling, Traceability and the WTO Dispute on
Developing Countries
GeneWatch UK and Gene Campaign had organized a two
day workshop on the
Implications of Labelling, Traceability and the WTO
Dispute on Developing Countries at the NCVO Conference Suite, London on
28th-29th June, 2007. The aim of the workshop was to build capacity on the
WTO and international agreements / organizations affecting bio-
technology, reflect on the ruling of the WTO on the GM crops trade dispute
between the EU and the USA, and to understand its implications for
developing countries. The workshop was attended by campaigners, WTO/ legal
experts and members of leading CSOs from Europe and the United States(Gene
Campaign being the sole representative from India), who have tried to
influence the EC- Biotech WTO dispute and highlight its importance to
global debates on biotechnology and trade.
Click here for preliminary report of the workshop.
A
second workshop on the same theme, but primarily from an Indian
perspective, was held by Gene Campaign at the India International
Centre, New Delhi on 17-18 July, 2007.
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Gene Campaign has concluded a research project on the Protection of Indigenous Knowledge of Biodiversity. The research was supported by the
International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada. The aim of the
research study was to develop an effective protection regime for the
Indigenous Knowledge of Biodiversity in India. Two years of meticulous
research has led to a number of findings and recommendations, which have
been presented in a technical report.
Reports
and documents can be found at
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A Jansunwai was organized
on
30th March, 2007 in New Delhi at Jantar
Mantar to address the issues of the Agrarian Crisis in India
and to frame a set of recommendations to resolve them. Gene Campaign,
Madhya Pradesh Kisan Sangharsh Samiti and INSAF organized the Jan Sunwai. Farmers, consumers, experts and citizens attended it from various
parts of the country. Views and evidence were presented to a Commission
consisting of Justice Rajendra Sachar, Sri Prabhash Joshi (Sr Editor Jan
Satta), Mr Sanjay Parikh (Advocate Supreme Court) and Swami
Agnivesh (President, World Council of Arya Samaj).
more...
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Gene Campaign organizes a public discussion on a research project to
assess
‘Stakeholder Perceptions of Genetically Engineered
Crops and Foods in India’
The discussion organized on 7 February, 2007, at the India
International Center, New Delhi was
attended by a large number of research scholars, students, academics,
members of civil society organizations, representatives of government
departments and international organizations, who commented on the study
and made suggestions to improve its design. The two and a half year
research project will cover five states, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Jharkhand, Punjab and Delhi.
Gene Campaign ( Dr Suman Sahai) will conduct this study in partnership
with the Central University , Hyderabad (Prof Haribabu, Dean and Head of
Social Sciences) and PAEDIA, , a research and networking initiative based
in Delhi, examining technology innovation and policy (Prof Amrit
Srinivasan ). Other members of the research team will be Dr Shambu Prasad
, specializing in Innovation Systems at the Xaviers Management Institute,
Bhubhaneshwar, and Indira Ananth from the Administrative Staff College of
India, Hyderabad, who has studied the processes of adoption of
Agbiotechnology in India.
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An
Introduction to Genetically Engineered Crops & Foods
Dr Suman Sahai was invited by the Rotary Club of Mumbai to deliver a talk
on An Introduction to Genetically Engineered Crops & Foods.
Click here to
read
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The Hazards of
Cross-breeding Pigs with Rice
Last
Tuesday, Dr Suman Sahai spoke on ‘Genetically Engineered Crops and Foods’
at our Club. Introducing her, PP Kalpana Munshi pointed out that Dr Sahai
had a PhD in genetics from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, and
was honoured with the 2004 Borlaug Award for her outstanding contribution
to agriculture and the environment.
more...
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Public Knowledge, Attitudes and Perceptions towards
Genetically Engineered Organisms in India
- Power Point Presentation by Suman Sahai
Click here to
read
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Gene
Campaign and Gene Watch, UK
will undertake a joint project on “Trade in GMOs: the implications of labelling, traceability and the WTO dispute for
developing countries”. The study is supported by the European Commission.
more...
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