Lab Rat Returns: First Salvo Fired at State Health Minister.

[Guest guest]

Opposing GM Food & Crops: First Salvo Fired at Orissa State Health Minister

Living Farms, Bhubaneswar

 

Bhubaneswar:At the recently concluded 2nd Annual National Convention Meet

organised by the Orissa Homeopathic Druggists Association (OHDA), attended by

1200 homoeopaths and pharmaceutical representatives from all over India, the

dignitaries present squirmed in their seats when Dr Rathindra Nath Dutta, the

President of OHDA and prominent member of Doctors for Food Safety, lashed out at

the authorities present in the dias, including the State Health Minister, for

not paying enough attention to the GM (Genetic Modification) debate.

 

In his inaugural Presidential speech he detailed how genetic engineering was

changing the traits of various food crops. He pointed out that genetic

engineering was about interfering with the genetic structure of plants.

¨¨Through such activity we are destroying the natural gene pool and creating

new mutations in the natural world resulting in harmful flora and fauna around

us. Widespread introduction of this technology will result in completely

nullifying the whole principle of homeopathy as most of the drugs in homeopathy

are produced from food crops and medicinal plants. Medicines prepared from

genetically modified plants will not work as the symptomalogy will have changed.

Our entire Materia Medica would be rendered useless. The whole system of

homeopathy will be jeopardised and will lead to chaos amongst homeopaths.¨¨

 

¨¨I request all the homeopathic fraternity and the eminent guests present in

this inaugural ceremony to raise their voice against genetic modification of

plants. Recent news reports indicate that medicinal plants are being interfered

with by institutes in Kerala with consent from Ministry of Science and

Technology. This must be immediately stopped. The Health Ministry should

immediately interfere and all the medicinal plants identified under the National

Medicinal Plants Board must be declared as cultural and medicinal heritage of

India. No genetic engineering should be permitted under them.¨¨

 

His Excellency The Governor Muralidhar C Bhandare listened with keen attention

and nodded in agreement even as Sri Sanatan Bisi, the State Health Minister,

preferred to remain stoical. The other dignitaries including an Union Minister,

senior health officials from all over India, dignitaries from AYUSH, IMS, Hi

Tech Medical College, Principals of all the Homeopathic Medical Colleges in

Orissa, clapped at the end of the speech. His Excellency Sri Bhandare hoped that

homeopathy would provide a safe and cheap alternative to the costly allopathic

system of medicine.

 

The I AM NO LAB RAT campaigners went around distributing leaflets amongst the

doctors who eagerly reached out so as to read more on the subject. ¨¨We had no

clue about this,¨ said Pravas Mondol a pharmcist from West Bengal, ¨¨we will

be pushed out of business if this happens.¨¨ Others nodded in agreement.

¨¨If our medicines turn toxic our patients will have nowhere to turn to. Even

the allopathic doctors should be worried as they too turn to plants for many of

their medicines. Why homeopathy even ayurveda and Siddha would be ruined. This

attempt must be opposed. We should never allow this to happen,¨¨ said Dr P C

Panda, a member of the organising committee. The organising committee members

helped the campaigners distribute their material and explain the subject to an

inquisitive audience.

 

Among others Prof Dr Chaturbhuj Nayak, Head, Central Council for Research in

Homoeopathy (CCRH), Prof Dr Laxmikanta Nanda, Principal A C Homeopathic Medical

College and member CCRH, Bhubaneswar, Dr Tirupati Panigrahi, Chairman Hi Tech

Group of Educational Institutions, and eminent homeopath Dr Ajit Kulkarni spoke

on the occasion. A souvenier Homeo a´´fair 2008 containing the speech of Dr

Rathindra Nath Dutta and scientific articles by senior practicing homeopaths and

researchers was released on the occasion. Over 2000 copies would be distributed

nationwide.

 

Lab Rat hopes that the Health Minister would nibble at this information and act

on it especially as Dr Anbumani Ramadoss, the Union Health Minister, has already

declared that he would oppose the entry of GM food and crops into India.

 

 

Debjeet Sarangi, Jagannath Chatterjee

Living Farms,

Bhubaneswar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WWII – a war that cost the lives of more than 60 million people – was

planned and financed by the world’s largest chemical/ pharmaceutical cartel.

At that time Germany’s I.G. Farben consisted of Bayer, BASF, Hoechst and

others.- Dr Mathius Rath

 

 

 

Be the first one to try the new Messenger 9 Beta! Go to

http://in.messenger./win/