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Byline: Sachin Chaturvedi The introduction of genetically modified products has raised several issues related to safety, labelling and identifying preservation. These concerns have trade specific implications as well. This paper makes an effort to take stock of broad institutional arrangements which have come up to address some of these concerns viz. a viz. trade obligations. In this context, the role of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB) is also analysed. Some of the provisions of CPB are in direct conflict with the WTO agreement on Sanitary and Phyto-sanitary Measures (SPS). This poses severe policy challenges to countries like India where the pace of agricultural exports has risen very recently.

Over the years the methodologies for collecting data on science and technology (S&T) and developing indicators based on the analysis of the data collected have been useful to policy makers and the scientific community as the indicators help in developing evidence-based policies, assessing the impacts of investments in S&T and identifying the strengths and weaknesses in the innovation systems. However recently, there have been initiatives to develop better indicators, improve the methodologies and identify what is more relevant in terms of policy making. This article provides an overview of these debates and related developments in the Indian context, with a focus on access, equity and inclusion aspects of S&T policy and how to integrate them in S&T indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]