Maya of Indian Science

Blog Intro:  Lies, denial and outright fraud have become the hallmark of Indian agricultural research because there is no accountability Lies, denial and outright fraud have become the hallmark of Indian agricultural research because there is no accountability

Sewage treatment wetland in making

Potential help

BESIDES inducing extreme rainfall and prolonged droughts, changing climate has made traditional wisdom of farmers defunct. Earlier, they would read signs of nature— flowering time of trees to egg laying by birds—to predict weather and decide on sowing and harvesting. But with climate change, farmers find they can no longer rely on their native wisdom.

Mobile soil nutrient tester

EVERY day, S C Datta, a senior scientist at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) in New Delhi, gets numerous calls from inquisitive farmers and fertiliser companies, asking him if the new soil testing instrument is ready.

Tomato decoded

WANT tomatoes to be more juicy, red and nutritious? No worries. A nine-year research by 300 scientists from 14 countries, including India, has finally made this possible. The scientists have sequenced the genomes of the domesticated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and its wild ancestor (Solanum pimpinellifolium). The discovery gives an insight into how the tomato has diversified and adapted to new environments.

Who is watching GM crops?

Saving rice

Something is stirring in paddy fields across India. New seeds, new crop management techniques and newly minted food security policies are about to hit the countryside. Not all of the changes that are being forged in Krishi Bhawan, headquarters of the Union agriculture ministry, in the top-flight research institutions across the country, and in the boardrooms of leading global and domestic seed companies are visible as yet. But these policies could transform the country’s rice landscape, perhaps, in an unalterable manner.

Neem, traditionally ours

Now that “neemania” has gripped scientists in the West and neem (Azadirachta indica) is being hailed as the wonder tree that can solve global problems from locust swarms to AIDS, Indian scientists are jumping onto the bandwagon. After Western scientists proved that neem-based pesticides are safer than synthetic ones such as DDT and can be commercially produced, Indian bureaucrats are pressing manufacturers to get in on the act.

GM and the superhero

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Everything you eat will be GM

PRETTY soon there will be no food crop in India that has not been altered by scientists. Everything from the daily cuppa, fruits and veggies to spices will be genetically engineered, either to be pest and disease resistant or to withstand abiotic or environmental stresses.