The Standing Committee on Chemicals and Fertilizers presented its report on ‘Insecticides and Pesticides – Promotion and Development including Safe Usage – Licensing Regime for Insecticides’ on December 19, 2023. Pesticides are broadly of four types: insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, and bio-pesticides. Herbicides kill/control the growth of weeds, and have the …
Pesticides have dominated the Green Revolution in India, so much that pesticides have become synonymous with plant protection. Only a few realise the problems associated with their use. Mira Shiva, head (policy), VHAI, sums them up: - There is no particular policy for pesticides and the government wishes to continue …
the Indian pesticide industry is growing at a staggering rate of about 12 per cent per annum. But, on the other hand, the market is flooded with sub-standard and spurious pesticides. Keeping this in mind, the Insecticide (Amendment) Bill, 2000, that seeks to reform the Insecticides Act enacted in 1968, …
Growing use of pesticides in agriculture has increased human consumption of chemicals. According to studies, around three new synthetic chemicals are introduced each day in the agricultural sector. Since almost nothing is known about the long term health and environmental effects of these pesticides, consumers are now faced with complications …
The recently-concluded meeting held in the German capital of Bonn has failed to address the issue of persistent organic pollutants ( pop ), deadly chemical pollutants that can enter the foodchain and play havoc with life forms. It has also failed to address the issue of setting up a mechanism …
Intensive use of hazardous pesticide has led to the death of thousands of sparrows who fed on dead insects from the vegetable fields in Dakatia village situated in Jessore district on the western border region of Bangladesh. Although the land is not suitable for rice cultivation, vegetables like brinjals, pointed …
After pesticides were blamed for the decreasing population of vultures, pesticide misuse is now decimating the national bird population. A team of veterinary scientists at the Choudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (ccshau), Hissar, has come out with a study that shows ignorance on the part of farmers, while sowing …
one is a notorious human pathogen, the other a highly successful pesticide. But just a few mobile dna genes separate them. Lars Andrup of the National Institute of Occupational Health in Copenhagen, Denmark has identified a novel gene-swapping system that enables Bacillus thuringiensis ( Bt ) to exchange an unusually …
reports from Finland of excessive pesticide levels in sweet peppers from Spain have led the ministry of agriculture, fishery and food's (maff) to test samples on sale in uk supermarkets. The results show high levels of organophosphate in the peppers. Ten out of 24 samples imported from Spain tested positive …
three decades of pesticide use in the Peruvian highlands has unsettled the balance of the Andean ecosystem. The rise in the number of cases of poisoning among farmers, declining soil fertility and reports of pests becoming resistant to agrochemicals has made the "technological revolution' in Peru far from successful. There …
one of the most popular pesticides used in the us, Dursban, may be unsafe for humans, say officials from the us Environment Protection Agency ( epa) . Any exposure to Dursban can lead to blurred vision, muscle weakness, headaches and depression, they say. Dursban, a pesticide manufactured by Dow Chemical, …
the use of cheap pesticides and fungicides have affected fruit production in the Kashmir Valley. Instead of halting the premature loss of foliage and fruit fall, use of these pesticides have led to the spread of many diseases in apple orchards. Farmers in the Baramulla district say that a large …
Can foodgrain production in India be increased further? I see no reason why foodgrain production in the country cannot be increased. To think that only Punjab represents the entire country, is wrong. In many areas foodgrain production can be increased by using increased inputs, like fertilisers. We tend to compare …
the "healthy worker' effect has been a mystery to scientists. This effect is a paradoxical situation in which people working with hazardous chemicals, or those exposed to radiation at their job, often appear more healthy that the general population. Epidemiologists have suspected that among people employed in jobs involving hazardous …
Authorities in Singapore have said that they are satisfied with efforts by Malaysian vegetable growers to cut down on the use of pesticides. Quoting Singapore's Primary Production Department ( ppd ), the Malaysian Vegetable Growers Association president Liew Chow said the quality of Malaysian vegetables had improved considerably over the …
the uk government has published a long-awaited Ecotec report on a possible pesticide tax. Existing policies have attempted to control pesticide damage by encouraging the use of relatively less risky pesticides and improving and controlling their application. However experts feel that tackling pesticide pollution requires a dual approach of less …
The Punjab state government of Pakistan has approved a Rs 15.5-million grant for a project to study the impact of pesticides and fertilisers. The project is called "Effects of agro-chemicals on soil, water and crops'. According to official sources, efforts will also be made to popularise integrated pest management (IPM) …
Cultivation of genetically modified (GM) crops is increasingly becoming popular. Supporters of biotechnology feel that GM crops are the answer to the problem of food security and will curb the excessive use of harmful chemical pesticides. Critics argue that GM crops could wreak havoc with the environment. They warn that …
