for private circulation only where is - cintdiscintdis.org/images/pdf/rice-hyv.pdf · for private...

HYBRID RICE IN INDIAAND ITS IMPACTS ON FARMERS’ RIGHTS OVER

SEEDS

WHERE ISOUR

ORYZA?

FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY

This booklet ‘Where is our Oryza?’ has been brought out by Living Farmswith Development Research Communication and Services Centre (DRCSC). Ithas been made possible by the support of Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst(eed). The research and writing for this publication was done by ShaliniBhutani.Shalini is trained in law and works on issues of trade, agriculture and biodiversity.She has worked in several national and international NGOs including the Centrefor Environmental Law at WWF-India, Navdanya and GRAIN. Over the last 15years she has interacted with several farmer groups and local movements acrossAsian countries that work for bio-diverse planet-sensitive people-centred foodand farming systems. She can be contacted at [email protected] section on High Yield Varieties was contributed by Dr. Debal Deb andcontains updated yield data based on his research on traditional rice landraces.He can be contacted at [email protected] are free to copy, share, translate and distribute this material. We only askthat the source be acknowledged and that a copy/link of your reprint, re-post ortranslation be sent to Living Farms/DRCSC.

Front cover image: The photograph on the front cover is that of a map basedon following references:1. J. P. Londo, Y-C. Chiang, K-H. Hung, T-Y. Chiang, and B. A. Schaal 2006.

Phylogeography of Asian wild rice, Oryza rufipogon, reveals multipleindependent domestications of cultivated rice, Oryza sativa. Proc. Natl.Acad. Sci. USA 103: 9578- 9583.

2. M. Sweeney and S. McCouch 2007. The complex history of the domesticationof rice. Annals of Botany 100: 951– 957.

3. D. A. Vaughan & B-R. Lu and N. Tomooka 2008. Was asian rice (oryza sativa)domesticated more than once? Rice 1: 16–24.

Back cover photo by Jyotirmayee Sarangi, Living Farms

Publication date: November 2011

Address for correspondence:Living FarmsPlot No.1181/2146, Ratnakarbag-2, Tankapani Road,Bhubaneswar - 751018, Odisha, IndiaTel: +91-674-2430176email: [email protected]

Design: Jyotirmayee Sarangi & Aarthi SridharPrinted at: Perfectprint & Graphics (P) Ltd.

The Government of India’s ambition currently centres around making hybridrice a success in the country following the ‘Chinese model’ to increaseproductivity of rice by bridging yield gaps. It is being promoted throughvarious government programmes viz. National Food Security Mission (NFSM),Bringing ‘Green Revolution’ to Eastern India (BGREI), System of RiceIntensification (SRI) etc. and crores of rupees are being allocated for eachprogramme.

We are now witnessing the consequences of first green revolution – whichincludes a trend of reduction in the yield of high yielding varieties (HYVs),declining and degrading natural resources like land and water, shrinkingbiodiversity and adverse effect on human health and economy as well.

Still, policy implementation is in full gear to bring the eastern states, includingOdisha, completely in the ambit of second ‘Green Revolution’. Where willthis lead us?

In this booklet, Shalini Bhutani puts forth the dynamics of hybrid rice scenarioin Odisha, India and global context. Odisha is considered to be the centre oforigin of rice and there are records mentioning the unique productivecapacity, high nutrition content, medicinal values and local climaticappropriateness of the traditional varieties. It is sad that neither the wisdomof farmers who grew and nurtured these varieties is recognised, nor thesevarieties are explored for sustainable production enhancement. Dr. DebalDeb’s view that ‘in situ conservation of the remaining landraces is the needof the day to ensure food security of the country’s poor’ sounds like anappropriate alert.

Preface ...

To ensure food for our millions and to stop hunger, rice cultivationand production and rice lands must return to our peasant farmersand communities. It is in Rice that we reclaim our rights and therights of our future generations to our culture, our livelihood, andfreedom from hunger.

People's Statement on Saving the Rice of Asiahttp://www.panap.net/en/r/page/rice/383

Inside…

Where is our Oryza? - Shalini Bhutani

- India story 5 - Global politics 7 - Rice business(es) 9 - Odisha angle 12 - Food security 14 - Farmers’ rights 16

Did You Say “High Yield”? - Dr. Debal Deb

Folk rice varieties versus modern HYVs and hybrids 22

WHERE IS OUR ORYZA?

Hybrid rice (HR) is one amongst the“modern” agricultural practices suchas latest breeding tools, new geneticresources, advanced biotechnology,etc. that India is going after tosupposedly increase its foodproduction. The Government of India(GoI) has a target to bring 3 millionhectares under HR varieties by 2012;and by 2015 hybrids are expected tocover at least 5 million hectares ofthe rice in India. To see that throughthe GoI in July 2010 constituted acentral-level ‘Task Force on HybridRice’, headed by an AdditionalSecretary in the Ministry ofAgriculture1.

The acceptance of HR by theofficialdom makes two things evident.First, that the administration has notprovided a supportive environmentfor farmers’ own agriculture. Hence,the reliance is on technology to ‘fix’the problem. Second, that technologyalso has its limitations. There isadmittance that yield levels of the so-called ‘high-yielding’ varieties of the1960s and 70s have plateaued. Thetechnological breakthrough of the‘Green Revolution’ is now of littleuse. The experience with atechnological approach should be alesson learnt vis-a-vis adoption ofother technologies.

India story

5

Shalini Bhutani

Phot

o by

Jyot

irm

ayee

Sar

angi

, Liv

ing

Farm

s

6

Yet, the Indian Council of AgriculturalResearch (ICAR) started a focusedHR research programme in 1989. Inthat year a HR research networkcomprising 12 centres across thecountry in the target states, as setup with the Directorate of RiceResearch (DRR), Hyderabad as thehub.While the research started inIndia in the 80s, the first HR varietywas released in Andhra Pradesh in the1993-1994 rabi season. The networkhelped in the release of over 46hybrids both from public sector andprivate sector.2 The DRR itselfdeveloped 3 HR varieties: DRR H1(1997), DRR H2 (2005) and DRRSankar Dhan 3 (2009). For this theUNDP gave ‘significant’ support intwo phases from 1991-1996 and then1999-2002.3 Mahyco ResearchFoundation (MRF), a private R&DFoundation also extended somefinancial support since 1996.4

Overall the adoption rate of HR byfarmers has been slow in India. Manyfarmers who grew the early hybridvarieties for one or two seasonsstarted dropping out from HRcultivation in India (Janaiah 1995,2000, 2002, Janaiah et al 1993, 2002).5

In 2004, the HR R&D strategy in Indiawas re-oriented. Meanwhile, the 1st

Basmati rice hybrid Pusa Basmati RH-10 was developed from a public-sector institution Indian AgriculturalResearch Institute (IARI) in 2006. Thiswas for application in the states of

“The challenge for hybrid rice inIndia is as much in putting inplace a supportive financial andmarket infrastructure as increating awareness amongfarmers,” said PradipMazumdar, India CEO of CropLife International, a globalresearch-based agri-industryorganisation. “It is also a socialand cultural challenge becausethere is a perception amongmany Indians that hybrid rice isdifferent and not to their taste.”

- From taste to yields, hybridrice’s many hurdles in India5

Punjab, Haryana and western UttarPradesh. Private seed companiesentered into an agreement with IARIto access seeds of this hybrid fromIARI, and produced a large quantityof F1 seeds. One might categorisethe period of HR R&D in India intothat of first-generation hybrids(1994-98), second-generation hybrids(1999-2003), and third-generationhybrids (2004 until now).

Hybrid rice versus farmers’ rights

Global politics

The India story has to be placed incontext of the big picture. Thepossibility of hybridising rice emergedfrom early work by Indian ricescientists (Sampath and Mohanty,1954). The Japan and USA bothattempted hybridisation of rice anddropped it. It is in China that HR wasdeveloped and its high-yieldperformance first demonstrated.Professor Yuan Longping, a Chineseagriculturist is regarded as the fatherof HR. In China, HR research startedin 1964 and it was in 1974 that thefirst commercial rice hybrid wasreleased there. And the Chinesecommunist state pushed thewidespread adoption of HR by itsfarmers. In 1979 the HR technologywas also transferred to the USA. Theinfamous US Rice Tec Co. became thefirst to commercialise HR in Northand South America.7

HR has policy implications for othercountries as Chinese foreign policytakes its HR abroad as it did in

Patents granted by the US PTO to the Chinese ‘inventor’ of hybrid rice

Vietnam. Since then HR has alsobecome a big business in China. Prof.Longping has even lent his name to aprivate enterprise for a stake inprofits.8 Now the Yuan Longpingconsortium of companies is movingto bring genetically modified (GM)HR varieties to the market.9 Thelatest “super rice” breed hasproduced 13.9 tons per hectareabove the Chinese national averageof 6.3 tons per hectare.10 A nationallaboratory for HR research led byProf. Longping has been set up inChangsha City, capital of Hunan, withthe support of Hunan Hybrid RiceResearch Center and WuhanUniversity in China.

The role of internationalorganisations like the UN Food andAgriculture Organisation (FAO) andthe Consortium of InternationalAgricultural Research Centres –CGIAR, particularly the InternationalRice Research Institute (IRRI) in thespread of rice technologies in India

7

No. Inventors Assignee Date For

1. 4305225

&

2. 4827664

Yuan; Long-Ping (HunanProvince,CN)

China NationalSeedCorporation(Peking, CN)

15/12/81

09/05/89

Methods for theproduction of seed forgrowing hybrid ricecomprising the plantingof rows of male parentseed interspersed withrows of female seed,synchronization ofheading and pollination.

1986 1st HRS in Changsha,China

1992 2nd at IRRI in thePhilippines

1996 3rd in Hyderabad, India

2002 4th in Hanoi, Vietnam

2008 5th in Changsha, China

In 2009 the Japan InternationalCooperation Agency (JICA), fromTokyo pledged to enhance thecapacity of the Alliance for Green

8

and other rice countries can not beunderstated. Soon afterindependence, India had become amember of the International RiceCommission (IRC) in 1948. The IRCpre-dates IRRI and works within theframework of FAO. In 1990 the IRCasked FAO to push its membercountries to grow HR for foodsecurity. One of the projects was forIndia by FAO’s Crop and GrasslandService that hosts the Secretariat ofthe IRC.11

HR research at IRRI started whensome leading hybrids from China(Shan You 6, Wei You 6, and Shen You2) were introduced in 1978 andevaluated in 1979.12 In 1993 the firstrice hybrid developed at IRRI wasreleased in the Philippines where IRRIhas its HQ. In 1995, FAO, IRRI andnational agricultural research systems(NARS) established the InternationalTask-Force for Hybrid Rice(INTAFOHR).

In 1999, FAO and IRRI signed aMemorandum of Understanding (MoU)to strengthen the collaborativeaction aimed at promoting wideradoption of hybrid rice technologyoutside China. An IRRI project on HRfunded by Asian Development Bank(ADB) was implemented since thelate 90s in collaboration with FAO,Asia Pacific Seed Association (APSA)and China in six countries(Bangladesh, India, Indonesia,

Philippines, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam).The ADB requirements in communistVietnam included prescriptions todismantle government support andallow private players in hybrid rice.

Meanwhile, IRRI and China havewalked the tight rope betweencompetition and co-operation. In2008, IRRI established a Hybrid RiceDevelopment Consort ium(HRDC).13 The HRDC coordinatoris a hybrid rice breeder from Chinain IRRI’s Plant Breeding, Genetics, andBiotechnology Division. IRRI plays thehost, coordinator and secretariat ofthis public-private consortium. Itcomprises public sector institutesfrom over 15 countries and about ascore of companies including all thebig seed corporations. Thesecorporations also sponsorinternational HR symposia (HRS).Five such have been held so far, sincethe series started in 1986:


9

Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and theNew Partnership for Africa’sDevelopment (NEPAD) to doublethe production of rice in the Africancontinent. In May 2011 an IRRI-JICAtraining support package covering2011 to 2014, over 150 Africans areexpected to be ‘trained’ to use riceand that too hybrid rice.

So it must be understood that ricetechnologies have been a means toexercise and expand control overcountries and peoples’ (agri) cultures.The concerted effort to push andpopularise HR in countries across theworld must be seen in that light,including in India. Ironically HR is notsomething that farmers anywhere inthe world asked for!

Rice business(es)

A large number of private companiesengaging in R&D and seed productionhave in the last decade recognisedthe business potential of hybrid rice.The hybridisation technique is a toolfor companies to cut-off their biggestcompetition, which is from farm-saved seed. Farmers who choose tobuy and grow hybrids must buy newseed every year if they want thehigh(er) yields. These sales assure seedcompanies of their profits. So thetechnology in itself works like abiological patent. Intellectualproperty (IP) (such as patents andplant breeder rights) and other legalmechanisms (such as contracts) areother tools of control. Through themseed businesses claim proprietaryrights over the planting materialrequired for developing hybrid seeds.The International Seed Federation(ISF) even expressly states thatproprietary parental lines of hybrids

should not be used by third partiesfor the purpose of breeding, exceptwhen agreed upon by the owner.14

Under the auspices of APSA a SpecialInterest Group on Hybrid Rice hasalso been set up. In India the privateseed companies involved in HRinclude both domestic and foreign,such as Pioneer Overseas Corp.,Hybrid Rice International (Bayer BioScience), Paras Extra Growth SeedsLtd., Parry Monsanto Ltd., MahycoLtd., JK Agri Genetics Ltd., GangaKaveri Seeds Pvt. Ltd., Metahelix LifeSciences Pvt. Ltd., Nath Biogene Ltd.,Sri Ram Bioseed India Ltd., Indo-American Hybrid Seeds, AdvantaIndia Ltd. and Syngenta India Ltd. Theprivate sector also benefits from theslew of incentives and subsidies thatgovernments have made available topromote HR. For instance, SyngentaIndia Ltd. has launched its own ‘Green

Hybrid Developed by

MoU with

DRRH-2

DRR, Hyderabad

Sampoorna Seeds, Pratham Biotech Ltd, Neo Seeds, Vicky’s Agri Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Charoen Pokphand Seeds (India) Private Ltd., Bioseed Research India Pvt. Ltd.

Pusa RH-10

IARI, New Delhi

Indian Foundation Seed and Services Association, J.K.Agri Genetics, Nath Biogene (I) Ltd., Devgen Seed and Crop Technology Pvt. Ltd., Zuari Seeds Ltd, Advanta India Ltd, Yashoda Seeds Pvt. Ltd., Namdhari Seeds Pvt. Ltd., Amareshwara Agri. Tech Ltd., Bhavani Seeds Pvt. Ltd.

PSD-1 & PSD-3

GBPUAT, Pantnagar

Syngenta India Ltd.

CORH – 3

TNAU, Coimbatore

Rasi Seeds (P) Ltd.

KRH-2

UAS, Mandya

Namdhari Seeds Pvt.Ltd.

10

Revolution in Eastern States’ (GRES)project. For this the Swisscorporation will be drawing on fundsfrom the Indian government for thepromotion of its hybrid rice seedsand pesticides. Syngenta’s projectpartners are the GoI’s Departmentof Agriculture and Cooperation,West Bengal’s AgricultureDepartment and CropLife India.15

Likewise, in the Philippines SL-8H, arice hybrid produced by the largesthybrid seed company SL AgritechCorporation (SLAC), weredistributed under the government’sGMA Rice Program.16

Source: Hybrid Rice in India – Current Status and Future Prospects18

A strong public-private partnershipis considered key to the fasterdevelopment and dissemination ofthis technology. Partnerships arehappening both at the internationaland national level. For instance, IRRIand DuPont signed an agreement in2009 to establish a new model forpublic-private sector collaborationcalled Scientific Know-How andExchange Program (SKEP). 17

Meanwhile, in India the CRRI hassigned five MoUs with private seedcompanies for production of CRRIhybrid rice seeds and parental lines.And it is not the only one!

MoUs with private companies


Extract from the MoU between CRRI and an Indian seed companySansar Agropol Pvt. Ltd19

11

A gap area in the public sector thatcreates a further market for privateseed companies is that of seedproduction. The National SeedsCorporation, State Farms

Corporation of India and State SeedsCorporations are in any case not ableto fulfil l the seed needs of thecountry’s farmers.

The Odisha angle

Most of India’s hybrid rice is grownin the country’s north and east. Withrice as the staple crop, the easternIndian state of Odisha finds itself atthe centre of the second GreenRevolution (GR II). The use of hybridsis a key component of this‘revolution’. Odisha’s branding as afood deficit state with a rice-eatingsociety g ives decision-makersenough justification to introduce ricetechnologies. Yet this is a State famedfor the tribals of its Jeypore Tractwho domesticated aus varieties ofrice ten thousand years ago. The stateof Odisha is historically regarded asthe one of the hotpots of origin anddomesticationof rice, from whererice first moved to other parts ofIndia. Even today several farmers aresaving numerous traditional ricevarieties that are locally adaptive,culturally acceptable and performingadequately. The rice wisdom of thelocal communities is beingeliberately forgotten.

It is not by accident that Odisha isalso home to the Central RiceResearch Institute (CRRI), Cuttack.Infact it is pertinent to recall thatCRRI was set up in 1946 against abackdrop of food shortages causedby the Great Bengal famine of 1943.Despite its existence and operationfor over 65 years the food situationof the State has not dramaticallyimproved. Instead of pursuing itspublic mandate, CRRI’s research

agenda too is now moving to developmarketable hybrid varieties of rice.CRRI has developed and releasedthree rice hybrids i.e., Ajay, Rajalaxmi,and CRHR-32 for irrigated andcoastal shallow lowlands. Rajalaxmifor irrigated areas of Odisha isclaimed by CRRI to be superior toGautam, IR 64, Krishna Hamsa andlocal rice in the boro areas. It hasbeen recommended for use in Assamas well. CRRI’s first long durationhybrid CR Dhan 701 (CRHR-32) hasbeen recommended for release inthe shallow lowlands of Bihar andGujarat although similar indigenousvarieties adopted to swallow lowlandexist in different parts of the country.For its contributions – includingdeveloping the first shallow lowlandhybrids Ajay and Rajalaxmi, the CRRIwas judged as the best ICAR institutein 2008. CRRI’s Vision 2030 laysemphasis on hybrid rice research.20

CRRI has also been designated as thenodal agency for the Government ofIndia project “Bring ing GreenRevolution to Eastern India (BGREI)”.This was launched in the year 2010-11 in seven States of Eastern Indianamely Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh,Jharkhand, Eastern Uttar Pradesh,West Bengal and Odisha based onstrategic action plans developed bythese States.21 The idea is to shift rice-growing from the North Westernstates to the Eastern states.Another large initiative to usher in

12

13

an agricultural ‘revolution’ in not onlyeastern India but South Asia isthrough the GoI’s approval to theCGIAR’s proposal of InternationalMaize and Wheat ImprovementCentre (CIMMYT) to establish a newstate-of-the-art , internationalagricultural R&D centre in EasternIndia - the Bourlaug Institute for

South Asia (BISA).22 This will be basedin Bihar, the state adjacent to Odisha.It will introduce elite wheat andmaize germplasm, which will also behybrid. So what will pan out in andaround Odisha as it becomes a hybridhub, will have implications for notonly eastern India, but neighbouringcountries in the South Asian region.

Proposed area coverage and seed requirement for hybrid rice underthe kharif season

Odisha 2011 2012

Area (hectares) 40000 60000

Quantity (Metric Tonnes) 6000 9000

The CRRI is promoting hybrid rice in several parts of Odisha and India.

Source: Extracted from NSC PPT


Photo by Shalini Bhutani

Food ‘security’

The justif ication given for thepromotion of hybrid rice is thatyields need to be increased to feed agrowing number of people and thatthere is going to be less land to dothat in future. Addressing thisproblem head-on should imply thatmore number of people be allowedto grow their own food, particularlywhen they have the know-how andthe seed wisdoms as India’s farmersdo. Since the problem at the macro-level is more about distribution thanthe production of food. Such a non-centralised food production systemwith locally-adaptive varieties wouldalso be more cl imate-friendly.Moreover, i f governments aregenuinely concerned about foodsecurity then they ought to stop thediversion of land for non-agriculturalpurposes. What can be moreimportant than food, and with it, foodsovereignty for its people? Sopushing hybrid rice is more than justabout bridging the yield gap. It isabout control, both over oryza sativaand farmers in the name of foodsecurity.The GoI went into mission modethrough National Food SecurityMission (NFSM). It has 3 components– rice, wheat and pulses.23 This Missionhandled by the Ministry of Agricultureis operational since 2007 in 17 statesof the country including Odisha.Under the NFSM the hybrid riceseeds recommended for use inOdisha are:

1. KRH-22. PA 62013. PA 64444. PRH-122 (Ganga)5. Suruchi6. Raj Laxmi 17. Ajay8. JKRH9. Naveen

This is accompanied with anincreased emphasis on extension.Demonstrations on Hybrid RiceTechnology are planned (onedemonstration of 0.4 hectare atevery 100 hectares of rice area).24

Besides the 15 districts identified inOdisha for NFSM, hybrid rice will alsobe introduced in Non-NFSM districtsthrough Green Revolution IIpackage. For this the GoI has madean allocation of Rs.62.62 crores(2011-2012) for Odisha.25 Out of thisRs 3752.04 lakh is for conducting 52block demonstrations of rice, eachof 1000 hectares to be implementedin the four agro ecological sub-regions namely, rainfed uplands,rainfed shallow low land and irrigatedrice (both HYV and hybrid).26 Duringthe period 2011-12, the Governmentof Odisha is implementing hybridrice demonstrations in two districts,namely Puri and Sambalpur throughGR II Package. This is couched in thelanguage of increasing production toovercome food shortage.

14

To supplement the work of StateGovernments for increasingproduction, several Centra llysponsored programmes and schemesare run. Some of them too promotehybrid rice. For instance, theassistance to producers is offeredunder the Integrated CerealDevelopment Programme in RiceBased Cropping Systems (ICDP-Rice). On since 1995 this programmeencourages the production and useof hybrid seeds and herbicides.

Advisors to the Government alsorecommend that HR be distributedthrough government nutrit ionschemes like ICDS & MDMS.27 TheIntegrated Chi ld DevelopmentScheme (ICDS) has a provision forTake Home Ration (THR) for acertain age-group of children.28 Thisis either dry or raw ration (wheatand rice) that lands up beingconsumed by the entire family.Likewise, the Mid Day Meal Schemein India is the world’s largest schoollunch feeding programme reachingout to about 12 crore children.

Other state-level agriculture policiesand plans aiming at increasingproduction for food could land uppromoting hybrid rice. For example,Jharkhand’s Draft Agriculture Policy2011 plans to bring more area undernew varieties and rice hybrids in aplanned manner. Likewise, theApproved State Plan of Agriculturefor Tripura (2009-2010) talks of givingsubsidies for hybrid paddy.29

While the food crisis in rural areasgoes up it makes labour move out insearch of both work and food. Andstates such as Tamil Nadu and AndhraPradesh are witnessing an increasein seed replacement rate (SRR) inhybrid rice due to labour shortage.30

More hands on the farm are neededto separate, package, process and dryseeds for the next planting season.Therefore, wealthy farmers simplyprefer to buy hybrid seeds.

HR has made rice-growing a cashcrop activity. Previously farmers usedto grow their own rice primarily fortheir own consumption. This meantthey could eat what they would notsell. High nutritional value oftraditional varieties used to provideindigenous communities with basicnutrition and support local foodcultures, even though it may not havegot them more cash.


Image downloaded from the Internet

In 2004 a HR variety developed by the companyMahyco named Suruchi was released by the

State Variety Release Committee. Mahyco’sSuruchi is being promoted under NFSM.

15

Farmers’ rights

Small farmers were initially slow tomove to hybrid rice in India andhesitant to keep cropping it. This isfor good reason. Both the price andperformance of hybrid seeds havebeen a factor. Surveys have shownthat the seed cost for hybrid rice inall states is significantly higher thanthe seed cost of inbred rice, as muchas six fold in Haryana. Due to theinferior grain quality HR grain fetchedalmost the same price as inbred ricegrain in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.32

It is only in last 5-6 years given moreincentives by governments andenabling environment for seedcompanies that HR has picked up.

The ultimate test for any seed is inthe farmers’ field. Linked to that isthe issue of ‘if and how’ a certainagricultural technology impactsfarmers’ rights to the seed. The ideaof farmers’ rights is still a developingone in India. A National Policy onFarmers was announced in 2007. Ittoo talks of hybrid seeds being the

one’s of ‘quality’, as against farmers’own seeds. Hence, it envisages thatfoundation seeds of new hybrids beprovided to grassroot level seedgrowers and their groups such ascooperative societies and SHGs.33

And in fact even the definition of‘farmer’ in proposed seed legislationis one who keeps out of the formalseed market. And hybrid seed is verymuch a commercial crop.

By law in India today, the notion ofrights of and for farmers is very muchlocated in the intellectual property(IP) system. This is a highlyquestionable approach that ispremised on the privatisation ofplanting material. The Plant VarietyProtection and Farmers’ Rights Act(PPVFRA), 2001 is the only law in thecountry, that even mentions ‘Farmers’Rights’. But the list of farmerfreedoms vis-a-vis seed and plantingmaterial that it provides could berendered ineffective by hybridisationof seeds.

16

Finally, a national Food Security Billfor the country is on the anvil.31 Thattoo could be used to boost hybridrice. The Food Corporation of Indiahas already been asked to procure

HR. The Public Distribution System(PDS) could become a ready-mademarket for the hybrid rice uptake.This will translate into anothersubsidy for the private sector.

“Farmer” means any person who cultivates crops either bycultivating the land himself or through any other person but does notinclude any individual, company, trader or dealer who engages in the

procurement and sale of seeds on a commercial basis;

- Section 2(9) of the Seed Bill, 2010

Also, if India is so keenly watching the‘China model’ on HR, then perhapsdecision-makers must also lookmore closely at the experience ofChinese farmers buying PVP-protected HR seeds. There isevidence to show how HR seeds aremore expensive and that came in theway of technology availability to thesmall farmers. Equally important is itsperformance in China and theexperience of Chinese farmers.34

There is also evidence from othercountries, like the Philippines to showthat farmers are having problemswith HR.

Pioneer Overseas Corporation’sPVP Application accepted by

India’s PPVFR Authority

17

Photo by Jyotirmayee Sarangi, Living Farms

Rice is a self-pollinating crop withflorets in which each plant pollinatesand fertilises, producing itself in thesame form of seeds of same variety.Hybridisation involves two separateparental l ines. HR is the directproduct of crossing two geneticallydifferent parents. So access to thetwo parent varieties – the seed

parent and the pollen parent areneeded to be able to breed it. Newseeds for planting the next seasonneed to be produced through cross-pollination. The technology and thefact that it is controlled by someoneelse outside the farm has seriousimplications for farmers’ rights. HRreduces farmers into merely being

CMS Multiplication

Hybrid Production

Hybrid Seed Production

Three-line hybrid rice cultivation

Source:http://www.knowledgebank.irri.org/ricebreedingcourse/Hybrid_Rice_Breeding_&_Seed_Production.htm

18

Farmers’ rights to seeds are alsoviolated if the natural environmentfavourable for the cultivation of seedsis destroyed in any way. Chemical-intensive farming damages the soil,increases inputs costs and hasnegative health impacts on bothhumans and animals. Yet thepromoters of HR advocate the useof chemicals. See for instance,


growers of someone else’sproprietary seeds. Thus, the so-called‘farmers’ rights’ in domestic lawsbecome meaningless if thegovernment promoted hybrid seeds.In effect what the legislature givesvia legislation the executive takesaway by policy and practice (see tablein adjacent page).HR research in the public sectordiverts research into marketableproducts, rather than public goods.This is a corruption of the intendedobjectives of the public sector NARS.This is true even of the internationalpublic sector, such as the CG centres.

The several thousand rice varietiescollected from farmers’ fields andstored in national and internationalgene banks are testimony to the folkknowledge of hereditary functionalcharacteristics of rice. In fact India isthe largest donor of rice germplasmto IRRI’s Genetic Resources Centre.These are being used as base materialon which formal sector breeders aredeveloping products. They also seekIPR protection in the form of PVP.For example, the HR varietydeveloped by Pioneer is before India’sPVP Authority awaiting the PVPcertificate.

Pioneer DuPont’s Hybrid RiceProduction Guide expressly thatexplicitly talks about the need forfertilisers, weedicides and ampleirrigation.35 Ongoing HR research isdealing with how to incorporateresistance to various pests anddiseases. However, this research isbeing done mostly by private seedcompanies. And the R&D efforts are

Law versus reality

19

underway to incorporate resistanceto various pests and diseases arethrough developing transgenic ricevarieties and hybrids.36 GM posesanother threat to farmers’ vision ofnatural farming.

Our language needs to change toreflect that farmer-developed inbredrice is not ‘ordinary’ rice, as claimedby those selling hybrids! The letter oflaw and policy also has to create thespace for farmers to strengthen

their ‘alternatives’. And those doexist! Farmers themselves arereturning to traditional paddyvarieties. So the question is: why the

original rice of the people of India isnot being officially encouraged.Why hybrid rice?

PPV & FR ACT, 2001 SEED BILL, 2010 HYBRID SEEDS(legislation in force) (pending (being released and sold)

introductionin Parliament)

Farm produce including Farm seed & plantingseed of a protected material can bevariety can be

G RO W N Farmer has to pay price for growinghybrid seeds.

SAV E D SAV E D No use saving seed from own harvest,hybrid rice is not self-pol lina ting

U S E D U S E D Seeds from F1 pointless to use asthe resulting will not be uniform inheight and in maturity. The farmer hasto buy new seed every season.

E X C H A N G E D E X C H A N G E D Makes exchange pointless as otherfarmer/grower can’t get reasonable yield,

SH A R E D SH A R E D Sharing amongst farmers is renderedmeaningless.

S O W E D S O W E D The seeds obtained upon harvestinghybrid seedswill not give high yield asthe hybrid vigour is lost resulting in loweryield and non-uniform crop stand

R E S O W E D R E S O W E D Resowing the seed is made redundantby the technology for reasons as above;because of reduction in hybrid vigour,yields cou ld decrease by about 20% andhence, be even lower that thoseobtainab le from non-hybrid inbredrice varieties.

SOLD, However SOLD, but SALE of such Hybrid seeds are sold as proprietarySALE of branded seed or planting material products, which are either certified,seed of a protected under a brand name registered and/or IPR-protected.variety IS PROHIBITED. is PROHIBITED

1Govt to form task force for promoting hybrid rice varieties http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/govt-to-form-task-force-for-promoting-hybrid-rice-varieties/100926/on

2 DRR Vision 2030 http://www.drricar.org/DRR%20vision%202030.pdf

3 www.hybridriceindia.org/undp.htm

4 Mahyco Research Foundation established in 1986 is known as the Barwale Foundation since2005. It is the NGO arm of the Maharashtra Hybrid Corporation (Mahyco), India’s largesthybrid seed company and the Indian face of the US MNC Monsanto Inc.www.barwalefoundation.org/

5 Janaiah A, Xie F. 2010. Hybrid rice adoption in India: farm-level impacts and challenges. IRRITechnical Bulletin No. 14. Los Baños (Philippines): International Rice Research Institute. 20 p.

6 http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/22/india-rice-idUSL4E7JM1F320110822

7 www.ricetec.com/Products/Hybrids/conventional# In 1997 the US MNC RiceTec sought apatent at the US Patent and Trademark Office on ‘Basmati rice lines and grains’ which areoriginally found in India and Pakistan. This case of ‘biopiracy’ had to be fought by NGOs andthe Indian Government to compel the company to withdraw claims pertaining to ‘novel ricegrains’ from its patent application. In August 2001 the US PTO only allowed the patentNo.5663484 with five out of the original twenty claims to specific breeding lines created byRiceTec. It means that the company could neither claim the unique qualities of Basmati nor theunique name “Basmati” as its invention.

8 http://www.lpht.com.cn/Channel.aspx?ChId=9

9 The consortium consists of Hunan Longping High-tech Nongping Seeds Industry Co.,Ltd.Hunan Xiangyan Seeds Industry Co.,Ltd. Hunan Longping High-tech Cotton & Rape SeedsIndustry Co.,Ltd. Agrochemical Development Company, Hunan Nongwei Science and Technol-ogy Co.,Ltd, Hunan Kangyida Science and Technology Co.,Ltd. and Hunan Longke AgriculturalMaterials Co.,Ltd. and other operating organisations. http://www.lpht.com.cn/Column.aspx?ColId=57

10 www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2011-09/20/content_13737437.htm

11 www.fao.org/ag/agp/agpc/doc/field/commrice/comm/23.htm

12 S.S. Virmani and Ish Kumar, June 2004 Development and use of hybrid rice technology toincrease rice productivity in the tropics

13 http://hrdc.irri.org/

14 International Seed Federation’s Position Paper on ‘Use of Proprietary Parental Lines ofHybrids. (2009) http://www.worldseed.org/cms/medias/file/PositionPapers/OnIntellectualProperty/ Use_of_Proprietary_Parental_Lines_of_Hybrids_2009.pdf

15 Syngenta to enhance rice output in eastern states http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/article2388476.ece

16 SLAC has a long-standing partnership with Yuan Longping High-Tech Agriculture Co. Ltd.

17 DuPont and IRRI partner to boost rice yields http://us.vocuspr.com/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=Dupontew&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=112044&XSL=PressRelease&Cache

Endnotes

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18 www.rkmp.co.in/sites/default/.../Hybrid%20rice%20in%20India.pdf

19 Obtained through an application to the CRRI under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

20 CRRI’s Vision 2030 http://crri.nic.in/crri_vision2030_2011.pdf

21 bgrei-rkvy.nic.in/Background/Background.pdf

22 In September 2009, the Union Cabinet approved the proposal of Ministry of Agriculture,Department of Agricultural Research and Education to accept the proposal of CGIAR’sInternational Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) to establish an internationalinstitute, namely, Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA) in India with centres at Ludhiana inPunjab, Pusa in Bihar and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh. www.icar.org.in/node/3692

23 The National Development Council (NDC) in its 53rd meeting held on 29th May, 2007adopted a resolution to launch a Food Security Mission comprising rice, wheat and pulses toincrease the production of rice by 10 million tons, wheat by 8 million tons and pulses by 2million tons by the end of the Eleventh Plan (2011-12). http://nfsm.gov.in/

24 http://nfsm.gov.in/NfsmMIS/StateProfile/State_Action_Plan.aspx

25 Guidelines for Extending Green Revolution in Eastern India, Dept of Agriculture &Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture, Govt. of India, March 2011

26 Presentation made by Sri Guru Prasad Mohanty, Asst. Director, Institution of ManagementAgricultural Extension(IMAGE), Bhubaneswar at a workshop at Patna, July 8~9,2011.

27 See Ashok Gulati of IFPRI’s PPT: Learning from Hybrid Rice Story of China, at the BGREIWorkshop in Kolkata, West Bengal in July 2010

28 http://wcd.nic.in/icds.htm

29 http://www.agritripura.in/Agriculture/Pages/ApprovedPlan10.pdf

30 http://indiarice.in/NewsEvents.aspx

31 nac.nic.in/foodsecurity/nfsb_final.pdf

32 Same as in footnote 5.

33 National Policy for Farmers, 2007 agricoop.nic.in/NPF/npff2007.pdf

34 GRAIN 2007 Killing fields the global rush for hybrid rice continues www.grain.org/article/entries/642-killing-fields-the-global-push-for-hybrid-rice-continues

35 www.pioneer.com/home/site/philippines/farming/hybrid-rice-production-guide/

36 Grain and Feed Annual 230211gain.fas.usda.gov/.../Grain% 20and%20Feed%20 Annual_New%20Del...

21


Did You Say‘High Yield’?

Folk rice varieties versus modern HYVs andhybrids

Dr. Debal Deb

In spite of all the hype and false promises, the yield of hybrid rice in India hasseldom exceeded 6.5t/ha under irrigated condition on farmers’ fields.1 Onmarginal farms (e.g. rainfed drylands, submerged lowlands, and coastal salinefarms), the yield of hybrid as well as any modern rice varieties remainsabysmally poor. The reason is simple: none of the hybrids can withstandadverse environmental conditions, especially drought and salinity, on marginalfarms.


22

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Hybrid rice versus farmers’ rightsIn contrast, there is a plethora of folkvarieties (also called ‘landraces’) thatare perfectly adapted to marginalfarm condit ions and localenvironmental vagaries. Many of thesefolk varieties evince amazing yieldperformance on farm fields. The tableon the next page describes someyield characteristics of a few selectedindigenous rice varieties grownevery year on Basudha farm in WestBengal and Odisha. The datapresented here are based on thecurrent year’s (2011-12 Kharif) plot-wise harvest from Basudha farm. Asthe data indicates, the performancesof these rainfed folk varieties are yetunachieved by any modern varieties(including hybrids) on two counts: (a)zero inputs of agrochemicals and (b)long term yield stability. Even oncoastal saline soil of the Sunderbanislands in eastern India, the grain yieldof a few salt-tolerant landraces is4t/ha – considerably higher thansome of the best lowland highyielding varieties (e.g. Sabita, Lalat)introduced into the coastal districts.Conversely, no modern variety canpractically survive on coastal salinefarms receiving tidal waters.

The mean yield of numerous lowlandlandraces often exceeds the meanyield of the best modern HYVs. Agood example is Bahurupi, whoseaverage yield generally exceeds 6 t/ha in southern West Bengal. Withadequate rainfall (but no irrigation),its yield can exceed the Chinese

average of 6.3 t/ha – aftersubtracting the loss due to sterile(unfilled) grains. While Bahurupimarks the crown of yield among thehigh-yield landraces, there existseveral lowland folk varieties (Tablein next page) which outperformmodern high input-responsivevarieties in similar environmentalconditions. One among this selectgroup of high-yield landraces is thatof Baigana Manjia of Odisha – over5.6 t/ha, which is substantially greaterthan the so-called HYVs tested inOdisha under identical edapho-climatic conditions. In the table in thefollowing page we have comparedthe yield of two modern varieitiesreleased by CRRI, Cuttack.2. All theselandraces also prove to be resistantto dif ferent insect pests andpathogens.

High grain yields are generally morecommon among lowland folk varieties,owing to obviously greater wateravailability to the former than to uplandvarieties. However, farmers’ selectionof yield-related traits, bred overgenerations, has produced aconsiderable number of upland varietiesthat yield reasonably high–despite zerochemical inputs. Dhankadi Deepa, anupland-adapted landrace from TamilNadu, is a case in point. If the rain is nottoo late or too scanty, this variety doesnot require irrigation for a moderategrain output. If the rain is timely andgenerous – as was the 2011 monsoon– its yield can reach up to 5.10 t/ha.

Source: Data from Basudha Farm (2011)

Yield characteristics of selected rice landraces

24

The examples given here are onlyillustrative. Basudha farm conservesa large number of similar high-yieldlandraces, which subverts the myththat modern HYVs are ‘high yielding’by definition, whereas folk ricevarieties are low yielding. The newfrenzy with hybrid rice varieties seeksto reiterate this myth by obliteratingall local landraces from the country’sfarm fields. A huge number of

incredibly high yielding landraces havealready been lost from farmers’ fieldsunder the impact of agriculturalmodernisation. In situ conservation ofthe remaining landraces is the needof the day to ensure the food securityof the country’s poor. Furthermore,an intensive search for locally-adaptedlandraces is more urgent thanintroducing new hybrids withuncertain outputs on marginal farms.

Dr. Debal Deb did his Ph.D. in ecology, and postdoctoral research in human ecology(Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore) and ecological economics (University of

California- Berkeley). He has been conserving and characterising indigenous ricegenetic diversity over the past 17 years, and has founded Vrihi, the only non-govt.

indigenous rice seed bank for rural farmers in eastern India.

On his Basudha farm in West Bengal & Odisha he grows and experiments with rice,using organic methods, and teaches these methods to other farmers as an

alternative to using modern high yielding/hybrid/ genetically modified rice varieties.Currently he is conserving (in situ) 710 folk rice varieties.


Endnotes

1 B.C. Viraktamath,B.C. 2011. Hybrid Rice in India - Current Status and Future Prospects, Directorateof Rice Reseach, DRR,Hyderabad, See page 10, Available at http://14.139.94.99/sites/default/files/ris/research-themes/Hybrid%20rice%20in%20India.pdf

2 CRRI 2005, Miracle Rice Varieities of India, Central Rice Research Institute, Cuttack


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