Carcinogenic cotton seed enters Telangana

HYDERABAD: Telangana government directed all district collectors on Monday to take stringent action against the sale and supply of the

herbicide tolerance

(HT) cotton as it allegedly contains carcinogenic material.

The seeds produced by US giant

Monsanto

have been cultivated across the state, prompting the government to ask authorities to destroy the produce.

In a letter dated 4, December, 2017, principal secretary

C Parthasarathi

told district collectors that unapproved herbicide tolerant trait (BGIII) developed under the commercial name of

Round-up Ready Flex

(RRF) has got released into the field.

“It is spreading rapidly and contaminating the other cotton hybrids and causing threat to the biological resources besides causing health hazards,” Parthasarathi said.