Herbicide Tolerant (HT) Bt Cotton

Why in news ? The illegal cultivation of Herbicide Tolerant (HT) Bt cotton has seen a huge jump as the sale of illegal seed packets has more than doubled from 30 lakh in 2020 to 75 lakh in 2021. About: Bt Cotton: Bt cotton is the only transgenic crop that has been approved by the Centre for commercial cultivation in India. It has been genetically modified (GM) to produce an insecticide to combat the cotton bollworm, a common pest. Herbicide Tolerant Bt (HTBt) Cotton: The HTBt cotton variant adds another layer of modification, making the plant resistant to the herbicide glyphosate, but has not been approved by regulators. Fears include glyphosate having a carcinogenic....Read More