Council approves eight varieties of Bt cotton seeds

02 Apr '10

2 min read

Of the total 11 varieties of Bt cotton seeds developed by the government research institutions and private sector, Punjab Seed Council (PSC) has marked its approval in favour of eight Bt cotton varieties and one hybrid variety, to be used for cultivation in Punjab, while two of the Bt cotton varieties have been deferred.

These varieties were presented in a meeting where, the breeders of these varieties presented their varieties for approval, by providing a brief idea about their varieties by highlighting the test results.

After detailed discussions and considering the information provided, the Council amongst others approved varieties like, IR-3701 developed by Nuclear Institute for Bio-Technology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE) Faisalabad, Ali Akbar 703 evolved by M/s Ali Akbar Seeds Multan, MG-6 and Sitara-008 respectively developed by M/s Nawab Gurmani Foundation, Kot Addu and M/s Agri. Farm Services Multan.

Conversely, the Council deferred two of the BT cotton varieties namely, CEMB-01 and CEMB-02, which were evolved by Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of Punjab, Lahore.

Though the procedure was initiated before eight years, it is for the first time since then, that PSC is approving the BT cotton varieties.

Experts are of the opinion that, these BT varieties if used for cultivation, Punjab's cotton production will move up considerably. This they owe to the effective resistance that these newly developed BT cotton varieties have against Bollworms.

Meanwhile, they also held that the Federal and Provincial government organisations should firmly deal with the seed companies dealing in fake and substandard cotton seeds.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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