Indian farmers/scientists lash out at food policies and GM genocide.

[Jagannath Chatterjee]

GM WATCH daily
http://www.gmwatch.org
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EXCERPT: Ms Shiva released an updated version of Navadanya's study
estimating more than 40,000 cases of farmers’ suicides. She said, "Suicides
are noticed in belts where farmers grow hybrid seeds and genetically
modified seeds and cannot save these seeds for the next season. These
suicides are nothing, but genocides."

[Dr] Chaudhary [executive chairman of India's leading farmers'
organisation, Bharat Krishak Samaj - BKS - which has some 5 million farmer
members] and Ms Shiva announced that they would undertake Bija Yatra-Asha
Yatra (march to save seeds) in the suicide belts of Maharashtra, Andhra
Pradesh and Karnataka from May 10, this year.
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Farmer groups lash out at govt policies
Ashok B Sharma
Financial Express, May 9, 2006
http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=126434

NEW DELHI, MAY 8: Taking the cue from Congress president Sonia Gandhi
cautioning Prime Minister Manmohan Singh not to rush headlong with
signing of free trade agreements (FTAs), the farmers and civil society
organisations on Monday lashed out at unilateral liberalisation policy of
government aimed at greater involvement of corporate houses.

The leader of the country's largest farmers' organisation, Bharat
Krishak Samaj, Dr Krishan Bir Chaudhary and Dr Vandana Shiva of the
Delhi-based Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology in a joint
press conference criticised the government, particularly agriculture
minister Sharad Pawar for going ahead to import 3.5 million tonne wheat
when the granary is full. They alleged that it is a deliberate attempt
to erode country's self-sufficiency in food.

They said that the government policies of the day are no longer based
on ensuring food security and farmers’ livelihood, but are dictated by
WTO, World Bank, IMF and USDA, and are best suited to serve the
interests of corporate houses and multinationals.

Mr Chaudhary said, "It is shame on the part of the government to take
the pretext of rising domestic prices of wheat to make a case for
imports. There is enough stock in the country, with a wheat production of 72
million tonne in 2005, and expected 73.1 million tonne, this year. In
the current season, the area under wheat has increased by 4 lakh
hectare."

He said that the uptrend in domestic wheat prices is due to largescale
hoarding by traders and multinationals. This is due to the removal of
restrictions on stocking. The government should immediately re-impose
stocking limits to check market manipulations, he said.

Mr Chaudhary criticised the involvement of corporate houses in direct
wheat marketing, and said that they are paying more to the farmers
taking advantage of the low minimum support price fixed the government. In
the long run the corporates are not going to pay farmers lucrative
prices and would buy the farmers' produces at distress sales, as has been
the case with African cocoa growers, he said.

Ms Shiva released an updated version of Navadanya's study estimating
more than 40,000 cases of farmers’ suicides. She said, "Suicides are
noticed in belts where farmers grow hybrid seeds and genetically modified
seeds and cannot save these seeds for the next season. These suicides
are nothing, but genocides."

Mr Chaudhary and Ms Shiva announced that they would undertake Bija
Yatra-Asha Yatra (march to save seeds) in the suicide belts of Maharashtra,
Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka from May 10, this year.

"Our ideal is not the spirituality that withdraws from life but the conquest of life by the power of the spirit." -  Aurobindo.

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