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	View Edit Domain: GreenBio Title: * Body: After a huge jump in cotton production during the last eight years mainly after introduction BT cotton seeds in country, there is a need to develop seeds which could withstand drought and growth of weed in the fields. This is a must to sustain the growth momentum.<br /> <br /> "With the country's cotton production expected to reach close to 30 million bales this year (1 bale=170 kg), the next generation technology shift would come from drought resistance varieties which would also deal with problems of weed," Jagresh Rana, director, Mahyco Monsanto Biotech India, told FE.<br /> <br /> MMB, a 50:50 marketing joint venture between Maharashtra Hybrids Seeds Co Ltd (Mahyco) and Monsanto India Ltd , has co-licensing agreements with 19 Indian cotton seed companies to bring Bollgard to Indian farmers.<br /> <br /> The Bt cotton variety was developed using a gene - Cry1AC - derived from soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis which make the crop resistant to pink boll worms.<br /> <br /> Rana said that with close to 90% of the total cotton growing area now under BT, there is a need to infuse new technology so that country's output continues to grow at a healthy pace. With many parts of the cotton growing areas facing erratic rainfall during the last few years, there is an urgent need to develop drought resistance varieties.<br /> <br /> "Better technology, seeds and improvement in farm practices would help farmers increase yield during the next few years," Rana said.<br /> <br /> After introduction of Bt cotton, the area under cultivation has increased from 72,000 hectare in 2002 to 23 million hectare. Despite having one of the largest area under cotton in the world, India's per hectare yield was 42% below the world average and 204% below Australia in 2008.<br /> <br /> According to the cotton advisory board (CAB), the country's output has increased from 15.8 million bale in 2001-02 to 29.2 million bale during 2009-10.<br /> <br /> However, despite the success of Bt cotton, Monsanto had recently stated that Bollgard - I variety had developed resistance to the bollworm. The company has blamed pink bollworm resistance to Cry1Ac protein in Gujarat to 'early use of unapproved Bt cotton seeds' by farmers and 'limited refuge planting'. Farmers are supposed to maintain a distance between Bt cotton farms and other farms as a 'refuge'.<br /> <br /> The company had advised farmers to take up "need-based application of insecticide sprays" and "properly manage crop residue and unopened bolls after harvest".<br /> <br /> A second generation variety, Bollgard II, introduced by Monsanto in 2006, contains two proteins, Cry1Ac and Cry2Ab.<br /> <br /> However, in a report submitted to environment minister Jairam Ramesh, KR Kranthi of the Central Institute for Cotton Research had cautioned against use of Bt cotton. "With about 90% area under Bt cotton, bollworms can develop resistance soon. The concern needs to be addressed on a priority basis before it is too late," the report observed.<br /> <br /> About the Bollgard variety, the report said it was toxic only to bollworm and does not control any other pests of cotton. "New sucking pests have emerged as major pests causing significant economic losses."<br /> <br /> © 2010: The Indian Express Limited. All rights reserved throughout the world <br /> Captcha: Please Enter Code : * Time Zone: * Select the time zone Vocabularies Newsletter: Domain: Show summary in full view Input format Filtered HTML Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. Lines and paragraphs break automatically. Full HTML Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. Lines and paragraphs break automatically. news_filter Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. More information about formatting options			Related Articles Now, desi cotton with Bt gene New GM technology to herald next cotton revolution Insects Find Crack In Biotech Corn's Armor Mahyco foresees a bounty in Bt brinjal Is Monsanto's BT Corn Losing Its Pop? Australia's crop outlook boosted by rain Monsanto seeks OK for low-fat soybean Feds approve Monsanto herbicide-resistant crops Bt corn farms expanding Biotech firm signs third licensing deal with Chinese Top GreenBio Articles

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