The Hindu Business Line : AP says no to rise in Bt cotton seed prices

Hyderabad, April 11 The hopes of cottonseed companies to increase the prices of Bt-i and Bt-ii seeds have been dashed with the Andhra Pradesh Government refusing permission.

The seed manufacturers have been appealing to the State Government to increase the price, pointing out at the sharp increase in the cost of production.

They also wanted to charge 23.30 per cent more (than that of Bt-i) for Bt-ii seeds (on a packet of 450 gm), claiming that it gave more value to cotton farmers.

Legal battle

A packet of Bt seeds are being sold at Rs 750 in the State, following a legal battle with Monsanto (which provided Bt technology) and seed manufacturers. The price had been brought to Rs 750 from the earlier Rs 1,850.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Mr N. Raghuveera Reddy, Minister for Agriculture, said that a meeting was held on Friday morning with the seed manufacturers. “We made our stand clear. We told them there could be no price hike,” he said.

Not much impact

On their request to at least allow a hike for Bt-ii seeds, the Minister asserted that though the Government was not against technology, it wouldn’t allow the companies to exploit the farmers. “If you want to sell them (Bt-ii seeds), sell them at Rs 750,” he asserted.

There are concerns that if the Government gave permission for a hike on Bt-ii seeds, the companies could gradually reduce focus on Bt-i.

The Minister said the scientists at the Acharya N G Ranga Agriculture University (ANGRAU) studied the benefits of Bt-i and ii varieties and found that there had been no great impact on the yield. There, however, was protection against the bollworm.

Misbranding

The Minister had warned the dealers and companies against ‘mis-branding’ (putting Bt-i seeds in Bt-ii packets) of seeds.

The seed companies’ hopes of an increase in price are not without reason. The usage of Bt had gone up phenomenally in the last three years.

“It started off with 3,762 hectares in 2002-03, comprising just 0.47 per cent of the total cotton acreage of 9.59 lakh hectares. The figure reached 5,158 ha the following year and 40,400 ha (or 3.44 per cent of the total) in 2004-05,” the Minister said.

It was, in fact, in 2005-06 that the Bt area reached a sizeable chunk with 3.24 lakh ha. It doubled to 6.57 lakh ha the following year, constituting 67.65 per cent.

Last year, it touched 10 lakh ha, covering 91.30 per cent of the cotton area.

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