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Lead
Story-
Agricultural Biotechnology : Growing, Unregulated
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The
government admits that the regulatory framework is not in consonance with
biosafety requirements and the way that biotechnology is being adopted in India,
yet, policies and regulatory structures have not changed.
Read more....
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Policy-
Malaysia To Enforce Labelling of GM Foods
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A long-awaited law to make the labelling of
genetically modified (GM) products mandatory is expected to be finally passed in
the Malaysian parliament and come into force by the end of the year.. Read
complete
Subscription required
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FAQs -
GE Crops & Food Security
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Will GE reduce the use of toxic
chemicals?
This does
not appear to be the case. On the contrary, we can expect higher toxic chemical
residues. Read more... .Subscription required
Are GE foods tested properly?
Nobody knows whether they are tested
properly or how they are tested since the government and regulatory bodies in
India.....Read complete
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IPRs
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Commodifying knowledge, Facilitating Biopiracy
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When
genetic material is processed in labs, it is called an 'invention' and ay be
patented, bestowing exclusive rights on its 'owner'. Broad patents are now being
granted for plant varieties, covering ownership of 'traits' and
'characteristics'. The result is that farmers cannot save, exchange or sell
seeds of protected plant varieties. Read
complete ......
Subscription required
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IPRs
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Sui Generis system for Protection of Undisclosed Information/Trade Secrets
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In the
ongoing debate about protecting indigenous knowledge, the effectiveness of trade
secrets among the various IPRs is still to gain ground. Read complete ......
Subscription required
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GENETICS
–
Wildlife Conservation and
Genetics: Promise for the Future?
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One of the
pioneering attempts at applying this new technology to the field of wildlife
conservation was the cloning of the gaur or the Asian Ox in 2000. The DNA of a
dead male gaur was placed into the egg of a domestic cow. Scientists has used a
total of 692 eggs, which resulted in only 32 cloned embryos that were then
placed into surrogate domesitc cows.....Read
complete ........Subscription required
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GENETICS
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Integrating MAS Technology
in Crop Improvement
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MAS technology is the specific selection of such plants which carry the 'precise
and desired sequences of DNA' necessary for the expression of the desired
trait.... Compared to genetic modification, where isolation of a gene is must,
MAS technology can be used even if the gene is not identified With MAS, it is
also possible to select plants for multiple traits, instead of the one or very
few traits.......Read complete
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COMMENT
– Keeping Track of GE
Research
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A breakup
of the genetic engineering events across the surveyed countries, continent wise,
reflected Asia as the major player, followed by African and Latin American
countries. However, Brazil reported 37 events from its public-private
partnership..Read
more...
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LEGALLY SPEAKING -
RTI for Transparency on GE
Field Testing
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The CIC
ordered the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) to disclose toxicity and
aller-genicity data on transgenic food crops that are being field-tested across
the country.
Read more
.......Subscription required
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HAPPENINGS
– Jan
Sunwai on the Agrarian Crisis
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Jan Sunwai
was organised on March 30, 2007, in New Delhi at the Jantar Mantar to address
issues of the agrarian crisis in India and to frame a set of recommendations to
resolve them. Read
complete ........Subscription required
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COMMUNITY–
Bioprospecting ... How
Good in Ensuring Proprietary Rights?
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The prospects of bioprospecting for
sustainable use of resources and as a benefit sharing tool for developing
countries is being analysed globally, through a number of case studies, its
implications and the major issues at stake. Read
complete .......Subscription required
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COMMUNITY –
'Genes are not for Sale'
Conference
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The ICPPC
conference 'Genes are not for Sale' was held in the end of April in Wawel
Castle, Krakow in Poland, under the patronage of the City of Krakow, which was
amongst the very first authorities in Poland to declare their area a GMO Free
Zone. Read
more......Subscription required
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COMMUNITY -
For a
GM-Free Europe
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Three
hundred representatives of GMO-free regions across Europe gathered on April 19
and 20 in the European Parliament in Brussels for the 3rd International
Conference on GMO-Free Regions, Biodiversity and Rural Development. Read
more......
Subscription required
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