Biotechnology in India: New rules and new opportunities

Published Jan 30, 2024

Tridge summary

India's Ministry of Environment and Forests has updated its biotechnology regulations, permitting field trials for crops developed using CRISPR and free of 'exogenously introduced DNA'. These crops are now governed by the Indian Seeds Act and are exempt from biosafety assessments by the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee. However, crops with foreign genes introduced through SDN-3 are still classified as genetically modified and subject to previous laws. Meanwhile, the planting of genetically modified crops has been halted until the Supreme Court's final decision, with policy uncertainty and approval system delays impeding research progress.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Until recently, the regulations surrounding biotechnology were unambiguous. All plant breeding was regulated by the process by which the product was developed, as is the case in the EU. The basic provisions date back to 1989, a time when genetically modified (GM) crops were obtained through transgenesis: the introduction of genes from other organisms to impart specific traits, such as resistance to pests, tolerance to herbicides or a longer shelf life. Introducing GM crops into the environment is a complicated process in India that has also recently made headlines again - more about that later. Revision of biotechnology legislation Because some things have changed in India. In what the government itself called a 'landmark decision', the Ministry of Environment and Forests revised the regulations on biotechnology in March 2022: field trials became possible with crops that are free of 'exogenously introduced DNA', in preparation for commercial introduction. This therefore ...

Source: Agroberichtenbuitenland