There is a lot of uncertainty about the future of Golden
Rice, innovated by the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) to help
vitamin ‘A’ deficiency in poor people. Environmentalists and civil society are
vocal against this rice which has been researched and innovated for over a
decade and a half. On the other hand, the approval of the bio-safety of this
rice did not match suddenly. Due to these reasons, many questions have arisen
in the minds of rice scientists as to whether this rice can be cultivated in
the country or not. Activities are now limited to correspondence between BRRI
and the Department of the Environment. Blaming each other.
Usually the color of rice is white. This variety has been
named as 'Golden Rice' as the color of the rice is yellow and golden. It is a
genetically modified grain. In the case of Bangladesh, this variety of Golden
Rice has been developed by combining BR-29 variety of rice with maize gene.
Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) started working on this paddy in
Bangladesh in 2006. The work is supported by the International Rice Research
Institute (IRRI) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, a US charity.
This rice is rich in Vitamin A. In order to fill the vitamin
A deficiency of poor people, Brie, an organization working in rice research of
the country, wants to expand this rice in Bangladesh. "Over the years,
scientists at BRRI have experimented with rice to ensure that it is completely
safe for the human body, animals and the environment," the government
agency said. As safe as BRRI Rice 29 is, Golden Rice is just as safe. The US
Federal Drug Administration tested the rice and said it was completely safe.
The same is true of organizations such as Health Canada and the Food Standards
of Australia-New Zealand.
But from the beginning, some organizations working on the
environment have objected to this rice. Ubinig says that the environment for
launching such GM food has not been created in Bangladesh yet. This is because
the impact of such a crop on the environment and other crops has not been
verified. In a country like Bangladesh there is no need for such a crop.
Because vitamin A is found in many foods, you need to encourage them to eat
those foods.
A delegation from Erie recently met with Agriculture
Minister Dr. Mohammed Abdur Razzak and requested approval for Golden Rice. The
then Agriculture Minister informed them that the issue of release of Golden
Rice in the country is currently under consideration in the Ministry of
Environment, Forests and Climate Change. However, he told them that
environmentalists and civil society have objections to the release of Golden
Rice in the country. Environmentalists say barriers to environmental protection
would not have been as effective if Golden Rice's biosafety had been approved.
They are blaming the disinterest of the environment department in getting the
approval.
According to the data, BRRI studied this rice for a total of
8 years from 2006 to 2014. After some experimentation, in 2017, BRRI applied to
the Ministry of Agriculture for approval on the bio-safety of Golden Rice. The
application was forwarded by the Ministry of Agriculture to the National
Committee on Biosecurity (NCB) under the Ministry of Environment. The NCB sends
BRRI's application to the Biosafety Core Committee (BCC) under the Environment
Department for review or scrutiny. The Biosafety Core Committee met a total of
three times from 2018 to 2019. But after more than two years, no decision has
been taken on the approval. In mid-2019, the ministry sought clarification from
BRRI on 11 issues. Scientists at BRRI say that the 11 issues have been
explained in a timely manner with appropriate information and evidence. Several
months later, the National Committee on Biosafety (NCB) sent 3 more questions
to BRRI, the scientists said. Where is the situation in Vitamin A in Bangladesh,
whether any of the tests done on Golden Rice in developed countries have been
done in any 'accredited' lab in Bangladesh and the amount of beta-carotene in
Golden Rice can really make a difference Will it happen or not.
The answers to these 3 questions have also been sent to the
NCB, BRRI scientists said. However, BRRI complained that the committee or the
environment ministry had not yet commented on the matter.
Rice scientists say that if biosafety or biosafety approval
is obtained, BRRI will conduct various field trials for necessary tests and
variety release. If the results are satisfactory, BRRI will apply to the
National Seed Board (NSB) for release of Golden Rice variety as per the
conventional method or protocol. The National Seed Board will approve the
release of Golden Rice if it is satisfied with the application.
Dr. Md. Shahjahan Kabir, Director General of Rice Research
Institute, said, “We are importing a lot of genetically modified food from
abroad. There is no problem. But I do not understand why the problem in our
country. We have to go for genetically modified grains in the future. How can
we move forward if it is obstructed in this way.
|Source: Online/SZK
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