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The Wire
a day ago
- Politics
- The Wire
Peru Negotiations 'Concerning', Scientists Urge India to Intervene in Genetic Resources Talks
New Delhi: Four scientists and experts have written to Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the urgent need for Indian intervention on proposals on the future of genetic resources in the ongoing International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture in Peru. The experts are Suman Sahai, chairperson of the a research and advocacy organisation Gene Campaign, Dinesh Abrol, a professor at the Institute for Studies in Industrial Development, and B Sarath Babu and Soma Marla, who are both former principal scientists at ICAR- National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources. The current trajectory of negotiations to change the multilateral system of the international treaty under which genetic resources are accessed by countries has given the writers profound concern, the writers say. "We urge India to take the lead in negotiations to strike a fair and equitable balance for all stakeholders, particularly between the providers and users of plant genetic resources," the writers note. § The letter is produced in full below. Sri Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India The 14th Meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group of ITPGRFA contracting parties is taking place from 7-11 July in Lima, Peru. The specific focus of this meeting is to expand the scope of the existing multilateral agreement to include ALL plant genetic resources instead of the restricted list of plants offered by member countries. This is not in the interest of India and other developing countries that are the providers of genetic resources. Apart from this there are other proposals on the table. We are writing to express our profound concern about the current trajectory of negotiations to change the Multilateral System (MLS) of the International Treaty under which genetic resources are accessed between countries. India, a leading member of the Treaty, is rich in plant genetic resources, which constitute the foundation of its agriculture and food production. It must not allow any challenges to its sovereign rights over this vital resource. There is apprehension that the current proposals on the table for the GB 11 will not adequately address the concerns of genetic diversity-rich countries, farmers, and local communities, whose enormous contributions have been and continue to be central to global food security. Pushing for access to all plant genetic resources, overtaking existing lists of plants that countries have agreed to present for global access Concerns Full access instead of a negotiated access, could significantly compromise a nation's sovereign rights over its genetic resources and override domestic legislation, like India's Biodiversity Act. It could also impact Farmers' Rights to save, use, exchange, and sell their farm-saved seeds. There is a palpable discontent that payment into the benefit-sharing fund remains paltry, while access to genetic resources (including DSI) continues and is slated to expand Access to genetic material for users must be unequivocally linked to a proportionate increase in monetary benefit-sharing for provider countries and communities. Revising the existing terms of access and benefit sharing The draft proposals aim to change the terms of access to Plant Genetic Resources and the agreed sharing of profits derived therefrom. Broadly speaking, developing countries are the providers of genetic resources whereas developed countries are the users of these resources Concerns The newly proposed payment rates and mechanisms are not such that will generate funds commensurate with the value of the genetic diversity taken. As it stands, after millions of seed transfers, very few monetary contributions have materialized. The revised MTA contains loopholes, allowing commercial users to avoid or minimize benefit-sharing obligations. The use of broad confidentiality clauses can hinder transparency and the ability to track the utilization of genetic resources and enforce benefit-sharing. Benefit sharing for use of Digital Sequence Information (DSI) /Genetic Sequence Data (GSD) This is perhaps the most contentious area, dealing with how benefits derived from the use of digitized genetic information of plant resources should be shared. Concerns Dilution of sovereignty Over DSI: Diversity-rich countries like India argue that unrestricted access to DSI without explicit benefit-sharing mechanisms will facilitate "digital biopiracy." It is difficult to trace the origin of DSI once it is uploaded to public databases Developed countries and the seed industry want open access to DSI for research and innovation, and advocate against mandatory payments. Any 'voluntary' approach to DSI benefit-sharing ( as being discussed) would allow users to access sequence data, bypassing physical materials, and evade benefit-sharing obligations. Recommendations for the way forward: Facilitate multilateral Group Discussions among Parties to bridge existing divides and try to arrive at a common ground. This is especially needed between diversity-rich developing countries (providers) and the developed countries (Users) to address specific points of divergence on DSI, expansion of lists of accessible crops, and benefit-sharing payment mechanisms. We urge India to take the lead in negotiations to strike a fair and equitable balance for all stakeholders, particularly between the providers and users of plant genetic resources. This would ensure global food security and a secure future where the rights of those who conserve biodiversity are justly upheld. Dr Suman Sahai, chairperson, Gene Campaign Dr Dinesh Abrol Dr B Sarath Babu, Former Principal Scientist, ICAR-NBPGR Dr Soma Marla, Former Principa Scientist, ICAR-NBPGR CC:
Indian Express
29-05-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Must move savings into productive assets for 8-8.5% growth: RBI MPC member Nagesh Kumar
India faces a 'major issue' of domestic savings not getting 'translated' into productive assets, according to Nagesh Kumar, director of New Delhi-based Institute for Studies in Industrial Development and one of the three external members on the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee. Speaking at a panel discussion on Thursday at the Confederation of Indian Industry's Annual Business Summit, Kumar said that without more investment in productive assets, India will not be able to increase its growth rate to 8-8.5 per cent from 6-6.5 per cent. India's GDP growth rate in 2024-25 is seen at 6.5 per cent, the lowest in four years, as per the statistics ministry's second advance estimate, released in February 2025. The ministry will announce the provisional estimate for 2024-25 GDP on Friday. For the current fiscal, the finance ministry has forecast a growth rate of 6.3-6.8 per cent, while the RBI has projected an expansion of 6.5 per cent. Kumar argued for the re-direction of Indian households' savings from speculative assets into productive investments. Fellow panelist Sudipto Mundle, chairman of the board of governors of Centre for Development Studies, also voiced his concerns about households' financial savings, which he said had to be increased. As per latest data, net financial savings of Indian households edged up to 5.2 per cent of GDP in 2023-24 from a multi-decade low of 5.0 per cent in 2022-23. Skill gap Mundle also warned of a skill gap in India's work force and said the government, in the short term, had no option but to encourage the growth of labour-intensive industries. In the long-term, the country faced the challenge of staying competitive in the face of transformations caused by generative artificial intelligence. To tackle this challenge, Mundle called for skilling the workforce and putting 'very serious' investment in research and development. Ipsita Dasgupta, managing director of HP India and another member on the CII panel, echoed Mundle's views, going on to warn that 90 per cent of the 15 lakh engineers that graduate in India every year 'are unemployable as engineers'. 'We are the country that is actually going to power the rest of the aging world. And we need to seriously address the fact that there is 200-250 million students today who need to be employable, who need to be able to find work, and who need to fit into the global economy,' Dasgupta said.
