Environment Minister and Science and Technology Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has said India will demonstrate to the world the importance of the cow by carrying out verifiable scientific research into benefits derived from 'panchgavya' or five elements of the cow.

The government is keen to "settle controversies" about the benefits of cow's milk and urine, and scientists have been directed to come up with verifiable findings, whether positive or negative.

He also said India would fulfill its climate change commitments under the Paris accord - and derive 40 per cent of its energy from non-fossil fuels by 2030 - regardless of the US decision to pull out of the Paris accord announced last week by Donald Trump.

In Beijing for a key clean energy ministerial meet, he said the Modi government wanted to use science to demonstrate to the world India's ancient achievements and traditional knowledge.

"If you say anything spoken by someone about importance of cow milk, or the panchgavya, you will be surprised very senior scientists in IIT Delhi and all across the country are working on this issue and the importance of cow is well established in our literature and well proven."

He added, "Our scientists are working to validate its power with science along with it. If you have to talk about it to the whole world, even for Ayurveda we know it is well defined and good and people can live for hundred years, but we have to scientifically validate it to prove it to the rest of the world. For Ayurveda also our laboratories in Jammu are doing this. When we established AYUSH we have put in Rs 5000 crore for the ministry and there is a lot of scope."

SETTLE ALL CONTROVERSIES

"We are thoroughly objective about it," he said. "The Science and Technology ministry follows principle of science. If a scientist gives a positive response, we cannot say its unscientific. That is why we want to once and for all settle these hypothetical controversies."

Similarly with yoga, he said that at a Japan summit he attended "one of the recommendations was that pathanjali yoga would be one of the biggest healers for mankind in the 21st century. But to be taken across to the whole world, we have to strenghten our scientific tools and that is what we are trying to do."

On the question of India's biotech regulator recommending to the Environment Ministry adopting genetically modified mustard, what would be India's first GM approval, he said a decision was yet to be made.

"Right now we are confronted with this issue. The scientists have made suggestions on GM mustard after some research and it is a burning issue. We will start looking at what the scientists have done, the evidence and then we will take a call on the issue. We will also take people's opinion into account."

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