GM crops are suicidal for Indian farmers.

On 9 June, the Shetkari Sanghatana, a farmer's group in Maharashtra, marked its protest against the government ban on genetically modified (GM) crops by planting Bt brinjal and HT cotton," wrote Prof S Rajagopalan. Brinjal, or aubergines, is the second most consumed crop after potatoes in India and is grown by "1.5 million small and resource poor farmers". "The traditional brinjal crop is threatened by a number of pests and diseases but most seriously by the fruit and shoot borer (FSB), which causes 60-70% yield losses, even after extensive insecticide use." Bt brinjal "has a gene that produces a protein that affects FSB larva but no other animals or humans". 'Bt' stands for Bacillus thuringiensis which produces proteins that block digestive enzymes of certain insects and causes them to die of starvation. DDT has been banned in many nations, although the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the US has found no evidence of its toxicity to humans. DDT is not easily destroyed and high concentrations have been found in people with Alzheimer's Disease. Many papers have been published linking pesticides to cancer though some say that no link can be demonstrated between pesticides and cancer. Recently, Bayer was ordered to pay $2 billion because its weedkiller Roundup, used with GM crops, was found to cause cancer. GM foods were first planted in the US in 1996 and are being grown extensively without the need for regulation. A study by RL Siegel et al shows that incidence of colorectal cancer has been accelerating to 3% annually from 2003 to 2012". Dutch researchers "analysed trends in 20 European countries" and "found a rise in cases of bowel cancer between 1900 and 2016 in most countries", though European countries are far more restrictive in using GM foods. Every medicine is extensively tested for toxicity by double blind trials before being allowed onto the market. But even after extensive testing drugs are found to cause surprising problems. The widely used pain killer diclofenac has been banned for use in cattle after India's vulture population was nearly wiped out. It is no longer available as an over the counter (OTC) medicine for humans in the UK after it was found to increase heart attacks. Lifetime studies of GM foods, where one group of volunteers are given GM-free foods compared to another group which eats everything, are necessary to establish their safety. "While protesting parties highlight the environmental risks of GM crops, they ignore the risks and costs of not using GM crops," wrote Rajagopalan. Not really. GM seeds are expensive and yields gradually decline as pests develop resistance. GM cotton resistant to boll worm were destroyed by whitefly in Punjab, leading to suicide by 15 farmers. Finally, losses are multiplied if expensive GM crops are destroyed by drought. Indian farmers are poor. They need better advice than GM.