Articles from General Knowledge TodayAgricultural Biosecurity Bill, 20132013-12-15 17:12:24 GKToday

ContentsObject ives of the BillProposed Agricultural Biosecurit y Authorit y of IndiaFunct ions of the authorit yPowers of the authorit y:Cont rol of quarant ine pestBiosecurit y emergenciesAgricultural Biosecurit y FundNat ional Organizat ion for internat ional Collaborat ion

The inf low of pests/diseases of plants and animals into count ries throughimports is considered one of the biggest threats to diversit y, leading to hugeeconomic losses. All of you must know that the weed Partheniumhysterophorous, called Gajar Ghas is a highly prevalent invasive species inIndia. This species is originally a nat ive to the American T ropics and it wasint roduced in India by the contaminated PL-480 wheat , which used to come tous f rom USA as food support once upon a t ime in 1950s and 1960s. Similarweeds are Phalaris minor (guli danda) and Lanatana camara have gotestablished in the count ry via the same ways.Against this backdrop, On March 11, 2013, the Agricultural Biosecurit y Bill, 2013has been int roduced in Lok Sabha. The Agricultural Biosecurit y Bill aims bringall aspects of plant , animal and marine protect ion and quarant ine under a highpowered statutory body Agricultural Biosecurit y Authorit y with adequatepowers.Here are some important observat ions:

Objectives of the Bill

A bet ter regime of quarant ining and cont rolling pests and even "exot icspecies".To cover four sectors of agricultural insecurity viz. plant health, animalhealth, living aquat ic resources (like f isheries) and agriculturallyimportant micro-organisms.

Proposed Agricultural Biosecurity Authority of India

To be established via the proposed act at Faridabad.To be headed by a Director General, appointed by the cent ral

government .Comprises experts in plant and animal pests and diseases, andrepresentat ives of various minist ries and organisat ions.

Functions of the authority

Regulat ion of the import and export of plants, animals and relatedproductsPrevent ion of the int roduct ion of quarant ine pests f rom outside IndiaImplementat ion of the post -ent ry quarant ine measures.It can issue direct ions to importers and exporters of such products forthe discharge of it s funct ions.

Powers of the authority:

No person shall import any plant , animal, and plant or animal products incont ravent ion of not if icat ions or guidelines issued by the Authorit y.Exceptions shall be provided to those imports that are issued permits by the Authority, and imports withsanitary or phytosanitary (relating to the health of plants) certificates issued by the respective authorityin the country of origin and the country of re-export.Exports of the above products shall not be allowed except in cases where sanitary or phytosanitarycertificates have been issued by an officer of the authority. However, such certificates shall not benecessary if the country of destination does not require it.The Customs Act , 1962 or other laws in force, that prohibit the import ofcertain customs and goods shall also apply to those pests, plants andanimals, which require permits or are prohibited by the Authorit y.If an of f icer has reason to believe that any product was imported intoIndia in cont ravent ion of the Act , the of f icer may require the holder toremove the product f rom India within a period of thirt y days. If the holderfails to do so, the of f icer may seize such a product f rom him andremove or dest roy it .The Authorit y may award a reasonable compensat ion to a person forloss or damage to non-infested plants, animals or related productsincurred by him as a result of any sanitary or phytosanitary measures.

Control of quarantine pest

No person shall possess, move, grow, raise, culture, breed or produceany plant , animal and related products if he has reason to believe thatsuch a product is or may be carrying a quarant ine pest .A person shall be responsible for providing informat ion immediatelywhen he becomes aware of the existence of quarant ine pests or plantor animal diseases in an area.The Authorit y may not if y any pest to be a quarant ine pest . It can alsonot if y an area to be a cont rolled area if it suspects or determines thatthe area is infested or infected with a quarant ine pest .When an area is not if ied to be cont rolled, the Authorit y shall

communicate the quarant ine measures that the state government shallimplement . Such measures shall include the t reatment or disposal ofplants, animals, their prohibit ion or cont rol and other measures.If the state government fails to take measures in a cont rolled area, thenthe Authorit y can take necessary steps for the eradicat ion orcontainment of the quarant ine pest . The state government shallreimburse the costs incurred for such purposes.

Biosecurity emergencies

On the recommendat ion of the Authorit y, Cent ral government candeclare a biosecurit y emergency in an area in case of an outbreak,dist ribut ion, or spreading of a pest or organism, which has the potent ialto cause a signif icant loss to biosecurit y.Such declarat ion shall cease to have ef fect af ter six months unless it isrevoked earlier.During the biosecurit y emergency, the cent re may give direct ions to theAuthorit y for managing or eradicat ing the organism due to which theemergency has been declared.Authorit y may not if y a scheme for the management or eradicat ion ofsuch an organism, with the prior approval of the cent ral government .

Agricultural Biosecurity Fund

The bill proposes to establish a Agricultural Biosecurit y Fund, in whichthe money obtained by the authorit y as for purposes specif ied in theAct will be credited and will be ut ilized theref rom. The authorit y can alsoborrow funds f rom any source through the issue of bonds anddebentures to discharge it s funct ions. However, to raise such funds, theauthorit y needs prior consent of the cent ral government .

National Organization for international Collaboration

The Authorit y shall act as the nat ional organisat ion to discharge obligat ionsunder various internat ional convent ions such as the Internat ional PlantProtect ion Convent ion. It shall provide informat ion related to the import ,export and technical requirements for plants, plant products and otherobjects, to similar internat ional, regional or other organisat ions, f ree of chargeor on a reciprocal basis.Thus, Bill aims to establish an authority to biosecure global trade in farm items. Theintegrated national biosecurity system thus established will be covering plant,animal and marine issues to combat threats of bio-terrorism from pests and weeds.Such a system would not only increase the national capacity to protect humanhealth and agricultural production, it would also equip the country to meet obligationsunder several trade and sanitary agreements in food and agricultural products.

Articles from General Knowledge TodayAgricultural Biosecurity Bill, 2013Objectives of the BillProposed Agricultural Biosecurity Authority of IndiaFunctions of the authorityPowers of the authority:Control of quarantine pestBiosecurity emergenciesAgricultural Biosecurity FundNational Organization for international Collaboration