Kindly allow me to share this long text. Seeds are so important that I am sure you will excuse me
Agriculture department has uploaded the 37 page long Draft SEEDS BILL, 2019 for replacing the Seeds Act, 1966 for comments on their website. The link for the Draft SEEDS BILL, 2019 is here: http://agricoop.gov.in/sites/default/files/DraftSeedBill.pdf <http://agricoop.gov.in/sites/default/files/DraftSeedBill.pdf> The views/comments are to be sent through e-mail to jsseeds-agri[at]nic[dot]in & m[dot]gunasekran[at]nic[dot]in *latest by 13 November, 2019.* It has 10 chapters and 53 Sections. The Schedule (read with Section 4 (4) (i) (ii) (iii) ) to the Bill divides the country in* five geographical zones.* *Zone I *has Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Puducherry and Laksdweep. *Zone II* has Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha West Bengal, 36garh,MP and Andman & Nicobar Islands. *Zone V* has UP, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, HP, J&K, Ladakh, NCT of Delhi . The 2019 draft Seeds Bill aims to regulate the quality of seeds sold, and replace the Seeds Act, 1966. All varieties of seeds for sale have to be registered. The seeds are required to meet certain prescribed minimum standards. Transgenic varieties of seeds can be registered only after the applicant has obtained clearance under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. *In nutshell, the text of the Draft Seeds Bill 2019 with 53 Sections **shows that The Seeds Bill, 2004 which had 49 Sections is being revised. According to the ministry of agriculture the new Bill is required to fill existing gaps. * *As per the 2004 Bill “seed” means any type of living embryo or propagule capable of regeneration and giving rise to a plant of agriculture which is true to such type."* *As per the Draft 2019 Bill “seed” means any type of living embryo or propagule, including seedlings, tubers, bulbs, rhizomes, roots, cuttings, all types of grafts, tissue culture plantlets, synthetic seeds and other vegetatively propagated material, capable of regeneration and giving rise to a plant of agriculture which is true to such type." * The seed quality regime in India is governed by the Seeds Act, 1966, the Seeds Rules, 1968 and the Seeds (Control) Order, 1983 (issued in exercise of powers under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955). In addition to these legal instruments, various guidelines and policy parameters have been laid down in the National Seeds Policy, 2002 and the New Policy on Seed Development, 1988. During the last four decades seed production technologies have changed and new technologies like transgenics, tissue culture, soil-less agriculture etc. have emerged. There is greater emphasis on seed quality assurance particularly to safeguard the interest of the farmers. The economy has been substantially liberalised and the private sector is playing an increasing role in various spheres including agriculture. In the liberalized and changed environment, India is increasingly engaging in the import and export of seeds and planting materials. The above necessitates up-gradation of seed production, quality and regulatory standards. Therefore, a need has arisen for up-scaling the seed quality regime by enacting a new legislation. Moreover, the following deficiencies have been noted in the existing Seeds Act:- • Registration of seed variety not compulsory. • Non-notified varieties are not covered. • Commercial crops and plantation crops are not covered. • Certification only through State Seed Certification Agencies. • No provision for regulation of transgenic materials. • Penalties for infringement are very mild. Based on the changes that have taken place in the seed sector since 1966, the existing Seeds Act, 1966 is proposed to be replaced by a suitable legislation. Accordingly, the Seeds Bill, 2004 was drafted in consultation with the various stakeholders and introduced in the Rajya Sabha. The salient features of the Seeds Bill, 2004 are as follows:- i. Compulsory registration of varieties. No person will be allowed to carry on the business of selling or supplying any seed which is not of a registered kind/variety. Farmers are to be exempted from compulsory registration. Registration will be for a fixed period but can be pre-maturely cancelled for stated reasons. ii. Enhancement of penalties is proposed from Rs.500 / Rs.1000 with or without imprisonment in the Seeds Act 1966 to Rs.25,000/ Rs.5,00,000 with or without imprisonment. iii. Provision for labeling of expected performance of seeds has been included so that the farmers are assured of quality of seeds purchased by them. iv. Provision for compensation to the farmer in case of seed failure has been made. v. The Bill proposes to emphasise the rights of the Farmers in conformity with the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act, (PPV & FR Act) 2001. The farmer will have the right to grow, sow, re-sow, save, use, exchange, share or sell his farm seeds and planting materials except when he sells such seed or planting material under a brand name. vi. The Government will have the right to exclude certain kind or variety of seeds from registration to protect public order or public morality or human, animal and plant health or to avoid serious prejudice to the environment. vii. Seed health has been added as an additional standard for quality seed. viii. Provisions to regulate import and export of seeds have been largely incorporated into the Seeds Bill itself as given below:- a. All import of seed shall be subject to Plant Quarantine (Regulation of Import into India) Order, 2003 and other relevant Acts. b. All imported seeds shall conform to minimum standards of seed health in addition to other conditions already in existence. c. All imported seeds shall be subject to registration on the basis of information furnished by the importer on the basis of multi-location trials. d. Exports can be restricted if such exports adversely affect the food security of the country. ix. GURT (Restriction technology including terminator technology) has been prohibited. Any person intending to import seed or planting material will declare that such material is, or is not, as the case may be a product of transgenic manipulation or involves Genetic Use Restriction Technology. *Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) has demanded the following components to be incorporated in the Draft Seeds Bill 2019. * 1. SEED PRICE REGULATION HAS TO BE AN INTEGRAL AND CRITICAL FUNCTION OF REGULATION: In the rapidly changing scenario with regard to commercial seed business, it becomes imperative that state governments have the authority through the Seeds Bill, to fix the retail seed price of all seeds being commercially traded, and royalty/licensing fees for any (technology) sub-licensing agreements, as in the case of cotton seed. a. Such seed price regulation should be for all seed, and not just in ‘emergent situations’ as proposed in the Draft Seeds Bill 2019. Real time monitoring of the emergent situations is not in place and therefore, this provision based on ‘emergent situations’ will be rendered meaningless in reality. b. Such seed price regulation should also include fair returns to seed-producing farmers, in addition to regulation of other terms and conditions for seed production by farmers. c. Further, given that the Seeds Control Order of 1983 is likely to get nullified after the Seeds Bill is notified, it is important to incorporate all the powers that state governments have under the Order into the proposed Seeds Bill, including the ‘Power to Distribute Seed’ (compulsory licensing). 2. COMPENSATION PROVISIONS HAVE TO PROTECT FARMERS’ INTERESTS: A critical provision in the regulation that upholds farmers’ interests is the Compensation-related section. Farmers should get compensated in case of failure of performance against the claims made. However, this provision is very inadequate in Draft Seeds Bill 2019 (Sec. 21). Without easy adequate and prompt compensation to farmers for sub-optimal performance of a seed, the main objective of this regulatory statute cannot be said to have been fulfilled. It is with great concern that we note that despite the Seeds Bill Amendments of 2010 proposing to move away from the original idea of farmers taking resort in the Consumer Protection Act, the 2019 version of the Bill once again talks about compensation to be sought through the Consumer Protection Act. This is regressive. The compensation mechanisms should be accessible to the farmer – district or even taluka/tehsil/block level compensation committees would be needed for this purpose. Compensation awarded should have a formula to cover the costs incurred and should also be against the value of the claims made for the performance of that variety at the time of registration (the guarantee of performance is not just about germination of the seed, but the actual crop performance). The compensation claim should be resolved within 30 days of filing of the claim and the farmer be paid within three months of the award of the compensation so that the farmer’s next growing season is not affected and this should be incorporated into the legislation. Any farmer aggrieved by the decision of the Compensation Committee should be able to appeal to a prescribed authority which shall dispose off the appeal within a specified time and manner that is prescribed. Further, compensation in the case of certified seed that causes losses to farmers should be shelled out by the certification agency too. It is these kinds of modalities that are missing right now, and should be incorporated into the Draft Seeds Bill 2019. 3. PENALTIES HAVE TO ACT AS DETERRENTS: The “Offences & Penalties” section needs to ensure that penalties are effective as deterrents, and these provisions are quite inadequate at present under Sections 42 to 44 in the Draft Seeds Bill 2019. Penalties’ range has been increased by a mere INR 20,000/--75,000/- in the case of two kinds of offences from what was proposed in 2004 (and in one more kind of offence, to five lakh rupees from fifty thousand rupees proposed in 2004 along with one year imprisonment), whereas what farmers' groups have been asking for is very different, and what the Parliamentary Standing Committee had recommended is very different too. The Committee had suggested that the level of punishment should begin with a fine of Rs. 200,000/- which may extend up to Rs. 10,00,000/- along with an imprisonment for a term of 3 months which may extend up to one year, for offences as described under Sec. 42 (3) of Draft Seeds Bill 2019. The Parliamentary Standing Committee also recommended that for repeated violations/offences, punishment should be in consonance with penalties provided in Sec. 73 of PPV&FR Act 2001. It is important to have penalty clauses which are in proportion to damage/losses caused to farmers and in proportion to the seed stocks produced or stored by the offende,r and not just as fixed amounts. Penalties should also include seizure of the assets of the seed company. This will then act as a real deterrent. There is a need to publish the names of all seed producers, dealers, processors and others whose varieties have been cancelled or who have been charged with contraventions of the statute. 4. IMPORT OF SEED SHOULD BE AVOIDED/DISCOURAGED: In a statute like the Seeds Bill, India needs provisions that do not encourage or liberally allow for import of seed from elsewhere. Import of seed should be prevented and discouraged since this is a matter of sovereignty and autonomy of the nation as well as the farming community, apart from potential economic impacts that such imports can have. This can be done for commercial purpose if at all, only after pest risk analysis and local adaptability have been studied. Multi-locational agronomic trials must be done in India and in states where such registration is sought and cannot just be on the basis of the data furnished by the importer. Further, foreign seed certification or self-testing cannot be held valid in India. Liability clause must ensure that seed importer is held responsible for any pest/disease outbreak, weed invasion, genetic contamination and for subsequent clean-up operations. Contamination of domestic non-GM plants will destroy India’s competitive advantage for non- GM and/or organic crops when GM seeds are imported, including inadvertently. Seed imports should not be allowed at all in India for those crops from countries which grow transgenic varieties of those crops when those varieties are not allowed in India under the Indian regulatory regime for gene technologies. A Schedule should be annexed to the Act, to list countries and crops whose imports must not be allowed in India, including those which are into field testing in other countries. Testing facilities and capacity for surveillance at ports of import must be strengthened and testing procedures followed without exception to ensure that GM seeds do not come in stealthily as country of origin is often masked by trans-shipments. All of this has not been adequately addressed in the current version of the Bill (Chapter VII of the 2019 Bill) even though pointed out in the past, including in the form of some recommendations by the Parliamentary Standing Committee in its report. 5. HORTICULTURE NURSERIES TO BE REGULATED: It is not clear why the 2019 version refers to only Fruit Nurseries and not Horticulture Nurseries, while the earlier versions cover Horticulture Nurseries. It is important to regulate horticulture nurseries since many vegetable farmers depend on seedlings supplied by nurseries and do not plant seeds directly themselves, and horticulture covers fruit species also. 6. REGISTRATION DETAILS AND PROCESS: a. Registration can be at the state level too, by the State Seeds Committee, as is now being proposed in the Draft Seeds Bill 2019. b. Registration should have a non-exclusivity clause which allows others also to sell the same seed variety under any other brand name, provided that the other brand or label also gets registered under the Seeds Act. c. Registration under this Act should be termed as “Registration for Performance” in a process that is distinctly different from the existing varietal release system in the country, and from the registration after DUS testing in the Plant Varietal Registration system under Protection of Plant Varieties & Farmers’ Rights Act 2001. Any overlaps with the other system need specific sub-provisions to be built into the Seeds Bill. Any other permission or clearance system for sales, processing etc., should be termed as Licensing, while Approval/Permission granting systems exist under Environment Protection Act, Plant Quarantine Order etc. d. The registration details, which should be put out in the public domain, should consist of geographical location, seed passport data, results of local agronomic trials in different growing conditions which should be conducted only by accredited government/semi-government/autonomous such as ICAR and state agriculture universities. Equally importantly, the parentage of the seed being marketed should be disclosed for each variety/brand registered and a declaration that these were accessed legally. Details about prior registration under PPV&FR Act must be shared too. e. Registration should also have a mechanism of random pre-registration testing against the claims of the applicant. This is something that has also been recommended by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture in 2006-07 on the Seeds Bill 2004. f. Seeds registered should be sent to NBPGR for retention in the National Gene bank. 7. EXEMPTIONS NEEDED FOR FARMERS’ INSTITUTIONS PRODUCING AND SELLING SEED: There is a need to provide some exemptions in this proposed legislation for all-farmers’ institutions which have explicitly been created for seed production and supply (like FPOs into seed production and trade). In all such cases that get exemptions, the government should take additional responsibilities, like the responsibility for seed certification etc. Exemptions should be correlated to criteria like distance of sale from the seed producing FPO, turnovers etc.. This should be included into Seeds Bill 2019 Sec. 47 provisions for exemptions from provisions of the Act for certain organisations. 8. TRANSPARENT AND INDEPENDENT FUNCTIONING: Any proposed institutional set up should have clearly laid down, pro-active mechanisms for information-sharing and transparent decision-making so that corruption and arbitrariness can be tackled. Such mechanisms are best set up at a decentralised level rather than in a highly centralised manner. The Central and State Seed Committees should have more representatives in the form of independent public professionals (independent from the industry) and farmers’ representatives. 9. REMOVAL OF CONFUSION WITH ANY OTHER LEGISLATION: The term “registration” and the implied understanding in various debates with regard to exclusive marketing rights (as contained in the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights Act 2001) that accrue from such registration under the proposed legislation should be clarified (some comments of the Parliamentary Standing Committee 2006-07 also reflect this). This legislation is not meant for any exclusive or any other kind of marketing rights. It is about the requirement to register before making money on seed as a commodity and about delivering against claims. Therefore, the term “registration” in this proposed legislation should be changed to “Registration of Varietal Performance” and “Licensing for seed sales, seed stocking, seed processing, seedling nurseries etc.” to remove any confusion on this front. Similarly, any overlaps with the notified seeds system (after plant varietal release processes are followed, and the released variety is notified in an Official Gazette) should be explicitly incorporated into the Seeds Bill through suitable sub-provisions. 10. SEED TESTING LABS: All seed testing labs related to the Act and its implementation should be equipped to take up testing for transgenic and gene-edited seeds also, at an LOD of at least 0.01% (and revised to match the latest technical abilities in terms of lowering the LODs), with primers available for event-specific testing, which also test for suspected-to-be-illegal GM seed samples deposited by public interest groups. There is a need for periodic audit of performance of the labs. SPECIFIC AMENDMENTS PROPOSED ON THE SEEDS BILL 2019 1. Amendment in the objective of the Bill: A bill to provide for regulating the quality of seeds and their price for sale, import and export and to facilitate timely availability of appropriate and adequate quantities of diverse varieties of seed to farmers in a transparent and accountable regime that compensates farmers for losses due to poor quality seed, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. 2. In “Preliminary”, Section 1, Clause 3, Sub-clause (b): “provided that nothing in this Act shall restrict the rights of the farmer to grow, save, use, exchange, barter, share or sell his/her farm seed and planting material except when s/he sells such seed or planting material under a brand name already registered under this Act”. 3. In the “Definitions” section, sub-section 2, insert: “Branded seed is such seed that is expressly sold in a packed container with a label and under a trade name, and cannot be farmers’ varieties”. 4. In the Definitions section, Section 2, sub-section 11: amend to “Farmer means any person engaged in the economic and livelihood activity of agriculture, who cultivates crops or other primary agricultural commodities, either by cultivating the land her/himself or through any other person, with or without land ownership, but does not include any individual, company, trader or dealer who engages in the procurement and sale of seeds on a commercial basis”. 5. In the Definitions section, Section 2, sub-section 12: Revert back to the definition of Horticulture nursery and do not limit to Fruit Nursery. 6. In the Definitions section, Section 2, sub-section 20: “Producer means any person, group of persons, firm or organization which grows or organizes the production of seed for commercial purpose, but does not include a farmer or a farmers’ organization consisting of more than 75% membership of farmers producing seed for other farmers with government certification support”. 7. In the Definitions section, Section 2, sub-section 21: “Registered kind or variety” in relation to any seeds means any kind or variety thereof, registered under Section 13, specifically understood as authorization or licensing for commercial seed trade without any plant varietal rights accruing. 8. Section 4 on Composition of Central Seed Committee: amend 4 (4) (vi) to – four independent specialists or experts in the field of seed development, including from civil society organisations. 9. Section 5 on Powers & Functions of the Committee: Insert 5 (c) to the current Section 5: “Seed Price control and Supply, including procedure for fixing seed prices and royalties”, Insert 5 (d) as: “Compulsory licensing of seeds where needed, especially if not covered for the variety under PPV&FR Act 2001”, Insert 5 (e) as “Regulation of advertising of seeds where required” and re-number the remaining list. 10. Section 7 on Registration Sub-Committee: Section 7 (2) (a): Change to “To register seeds of varieties after scrutinizing their claims as made in the application in such manner as may be prescribed including random pre-registration testing”. 11. Section 11 on State Seed Committee: Amend 11 (a) to – “to register State seed varieties suitable for the state, based on independent verification of agronomic trials’ data and to fix prices of seeds registered”; Add 11 (g): “to collect data and review performance of seeds after the authorization through licensing”; Add 11(f): “to order compulsory licensing where required”. 12. Section 14 (1) on Registration of seeds of any kind or variety: Amend to: “No seed of any kind or variety shall, for the purposes of sowing or planting by any person be sold, except by a farmer as defined in this Act, unless such kind or variety is registered under Sub-Section (2)…”. 13. Section 15 on Procedure for Registration: Insert after 15 (1): “provided that every application for registration under Section 14 shall contain a complete passport data of the parental lines from which the kind or variety has been derived from and wherefrom the genetic material has been sourced and all such information relating to the contribution, if any, of any farmer, village community, institution or organization in breeding, evolving or developing the kind or variety”. Correct the typo in Sec. 15 (2) to “as the case may be, shall, after such enquiry as it deems fit,…” 14. Section 15 on Procedure for Registration: Change 15 (2) to include pre-registration testing in the following manner: “On receipt of any application for the registration of a kind or variety of seed, the Registration for Varietal Performance Sub-Committee including at the state level, shall, after such mandatory testing as required, and other such inquiry that it deems fit and after satisfying itself that the kind or variety of seed to which the application relates to, conforms to the claims made by the importer or the producer/seller, as the case may be, as regards the efficacy of the kind or variety of seed…..(REST FROM THE BILL) and issue a certificate of registration for performance; further provided that such registration details will be put up in the public domain by the Central and State Seed Committee, in a format as prescribed”. 15. Section 20 on Evaluation of Performance: Include the phrase “independent” as suggested hereunder: “20. The Committee may, for conducting trials to assess the performance, accredit centres of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, State Agricultural Universities and such other independent organizations fulfilling the eligibility requirements as may be prescribed, to conduct trials to evaluate the performance of any kind or variety of seeds”. 16. Section 21 on Compensation to Farmer: The following to be substituted as Section 20 (1): “Where the seed is sold to the farmer of a registered kind or variety by the producer, dealer, distributor or vendor as the case may be, s/he shall disclose the expected performance of such kind or variety to the farmer under given growing conditions and if such registered seed fails to provide the promised performance under such given conditions, the farmer may claim such compensation from such producer, dealer, distributor or vendor as may be determined by a District Level Compensation Committee set up under this Act by the state government for the purpose which is to adjudicate within a month of receiving the claim, provided that such compensation is equal at least to the monetary value of the promised performance and also compensates for the costs incurred by the farmer, and provided that such compensation is paid to the farmer after the Compensation Committee’s proceedings and orders within 3 months’ time”. 17. Section 22 onwards related to registration of processing units, seed dealers and nurseries: The term licensing may be substituted for ‘registration’. The registration of Horticulture nurseries to be included, and not just fruit nurseries of more than one hectare area. 18. Section 27 on Regulation of Sale Price in Emergent Situations: Regulation of Sale Price in emergent situations may be deleted, and instead, as suggested in Points 9 and 11 above, with regard to functions of Central Seed Committee and State Seed Committee, regulation of seed prices should be a key routine function of these Committees. 19. DELETE Section 32 completely on recognition for seed certification agencies in territory outside India. 20. Section 34, on Central and State Seed Testing Laboratories: Add, sub-section 34 (6) as following: “All seed testing laboratories shall be equipped to take up testing for transgenic and gene-edited seeds also, at an LOD of at least 0.01% (which is to be revised periodically to match the latest technical abilities to test at lower Levels of Detection), with primers necessary for event-specific testing; provided that such labs also test samples deposited by public interest groups of suspected unauthorized genetically modified seeds, transgenic or gene-edited”. Add, sub-section 34 (7) as: “all seed testing labs shall have to be audited periodically for conforming to standards and practices as prescribed”. 21. Section 40, sub-section 1 on Import & Export of Seed: Change 40 (1) (c) to: “All import of seed meant for commercial purposes shall be subject to registration as may be granted on the basis of information furnished by the importer as well as the results of multi-locational trials conducted in such an independent manner and for such period as may be prescribed to establish performance in India and specifically in the agro-ecological areas where the seed is sought to be sold. Further provided that no seed including transgenic seeds being commercially cultivated or field-tested in other countries, included in Schedule XYZ of the Act can be imported into India”. 22. Section 42 on Offences and Punishment: Substitute the following after ‘be punishable with’ – “a fine in proportion to the damage caused, and quantity of seed supplied or stocked or turnover value to cover real and potential loss to farmers, which shall not be less than Rs. 500000/- (five lakh rupees), which may extend to Rs. 10,00,000 (ten lakh rupees) and imprisonment for three months to one year, in addition to seizure or attachment of assets of the offender. Further, any individual or company convicted under this Act may be banned from any seed-related activity by the state government upon subsequent convictions. The state seed committee and central seed committee, as the case may be, shall publish a list of all seed producers and dealers/distributors/stockists/nurseries whose registration of variety has been cancelled, and those who have been charged with contravention of the provisions of the Act”. 23. Section 47 on ‘Exemptions from Provisions of Act’: Add to ‘any educational, scientific, research or extension organisation’, “farmer producer organisations”. ----------------- *The Draft Bill must be translated in the Indian languages at the earliest. *Government has plans to table the Seeds Bill in the coming session of Parliament commencing from *November 18. * -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to greenyouth+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/greenyouth/CAPpKBbrtVxQw4vw4ge%3DoWz-55PM3uv4PxtP%3DpPmpZs%3DXmMPgLA%40mail.gmail.com.
