The Genetically Modified (GM) variety of cotton or Bt cotton has helped India become a net exporter of cotton, according to Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairperson of Karnataka’s Biotechnology vision Group.
Speaking at an industry conference-cum-expo in Bangalore, Ms. Shaw said India’s cotton yield has doubled to 510 kg per hectare from 225 kg per hectare a decade earlier, which has enabled the country to turn net exporter from being an importer earlier.
She said Biotechnology has raised standards in bio-agriculture and bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton has achieved remarkable success resulting in an increase in production by 90 percent in some states.
She added that the industry has already invested about US$ 7.5 billion in developing new techniques in bio-agriculture to produce newer crop varieties that give increased yields.
Source:
http://www.fibre2fashion.com/news/textile-news/newsdetails.aspx?news_id=120836
