BRAI Bill: NAC member Aruna writes to Sonia,wants public debate

Updated on: Monday, December 05, 2011

Aruna Roy, a member of the National Development Council, has urged the body's head and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi to intervene and hold back introduction of a bill on biotechnology in Parliament and allow further public debate on the matter

"I request your urgent intervention to stop the introduction of the Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India (BRAI) Bill, 2011, in Parliament and open the matter up for further public consultation and deliberation," Roy said in a letter to Gandhi.

"The Bill is of importance for all citizens of the country as it intends to set up an authority to regulate and promote the use of biotechnology in agriculture in India. It was drafted with very little public consultation and contains many objectionable provisions," she said in the letter.

"Significant defects in the proposed Bill include superseding RTI Act, usurping state governments prerogative to oversee health and agriculture, curtailing citizen's right to move court and weak penal clauses and liability mechanism among others," she said.

Given the significance of the Bill on the health and safety of all citizens of the country, it is better to subject it to rigorous public debate and address citizens' concerns, Roy said.

It may be recalled, the government had put a moratorium on Bt brinjal in February 2010 in view of protest from anti-GM groups on the health grounds.

Recently, Bihar and Karnataka did not allow field trials of GM maize by private seed companies.

BRAI Bill: NAC member Aruna writes to Sonia,wants public debate

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