Activists, farmers' representative question genome-edited rice varieties; ask Centre to withdraw seeds
Coalition for GM-free India, a civil society organisation that fights a case against genetically modified crops in the Supreme Court, has demanded that the Centre withdraw the two genome-edited rice varieties announced on Sunday (May 4, 2025).
The organisation, in a statement on Monday (May 5, 2025), alleged that the seeds have the potential to harm humans and cause irreversible damage to the environment.
Venugopal Badaravada, a member of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research's (ICAR) governing body representing farmers, said the announcement reflects a troubling trend of prioritising 'science-for-headlines' over 'solutions-for-the-farm'.
The coalition termed the announcement illegal and said the Centre knows that lack of safety will reveal itself if the genome-edited rice varieties are put through regulatory testing, and therefore deregulate Site-Directed Nuclease 1 and Site-Directed Nuclease 2 (SDN-1 and SDN-2) gene editing techniques in the country. 'It is shocking that the Government of India is doing unlawful things under pressure from corporate lobbies. There is an enormous body of scientific literature that is pointing to the lack of safety of gene editing techniques,' the Coalition said, adding that the seeds are being released based on unscientific rationale and 'under a smokescreen of higher yield/drought resistance, etc, without any safety testing at all.'
'We object to it and warn the government that strong resistance will be put up against this development. Public-spirited scientists and concerned citizens will join hands like in the past to expose the irresponsible and unscientific approach of the government,' their statement added.
The Centre had announced the development of two gene-edited varieties of rice, Kamala (DRR Dhan 100), developed by the Indian Institute of Rice Research (ICAR-IIRR), Hyderabad, and Pusa DST Rice 1, developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Delhi, on Sunday. 'There is a lack of public information on the exact process undertaken to develop these two varieties of gene-edited rice. These crops should not be released without sufficient independent testing and must be subject to public scrutiny,' they added.
Mr. Badaravada said the announcement is deeply concerning, as, according to him, there is no proven climate resilience, and genome-editing claims are being publicised without long-term, multi-location field trials.
'Resilience to drought, salinity, or heat stress can only be authenticated through at least five to seven years of rigorous, pan-India testing. Skipping this process is scientifically irresponsible. At no point were farmers or field experts consulted in the development or evaluation of these varieties. This is emblematic of a top-down, technocratic approach that neglects grassroots experience,' he said.
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