Guidelines for Safety Assessment of Genome Edited Plants 2022
On 21st May, 2022, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) issued guidelines easing norms for research into genetically modified (GM) crops and circumventing challenges of using foreign genes to change crops profile.
About Guidelines
- It exempts researchers who use gene-editing technology to modify the genome of the plant from seeking approvals from the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC).
- The environment ministry in March 2022 exempted SDN 1 and SDN 2 genomes from Rules 7-11 of the Environment Protection Act.
- Conventional breeding technique takes 8- 10 years for development of new crop varieties; genome-editing can do this faster.
- The Environment Ministry too has sanctioned this ....