Experts Call for State Power on Pesticides Effects

Hyderabad: A national symposium held on the occasion of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Remembrance Day or No Pesticide Use Week, observed between December 3 and 10, expressed dismay over the extensive use of pesticides without regard for their consequences. The event, organised by Pesticide Action Network India, highlighted the limitations of the regulatory mechanism, particularly the Insecticide Act of 1968, which centralises power and restricts state-level action on pesticide regulation.

Dr Donthi Narasimha Reddy, a public policy expert, discussed the harmful effects of highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs) such as Glyphosate and Chlorpyrifos, which have caused DNA damage and affected earthworm activity. He also presented alarming statistics, revealing that 44 per cent of the global agricultural workforce - around 860 million farmers and workers - suffer from pesticide poisoning annually, with approximately 11,000 fatalities each year. Nearly 60 per cent of these fatalities occur in India, underscoring the severity of the issue.

In India, one-third of all registered pesticides belong to the highly hazardous category, 120 out of 318 as of October 10, 2022. Of the 339 pesticides registered in 2024, 118 are HHPs, with 81 banned in other countries.

A. D. Dileep Kumar, CEO of Pesticide Action Network, pointed out that HHPs are among the highest exported and imported pesticides in India. HHPs are also among the most used pesticides in the country. Several of these HHPs registered in India are not properly studied or tested for safety, as they were in use before the Insecticide Act of 1968 came into effect.

The Insecticide Act of 1968 restricts states from taking long-term action on harmful pesticides. States can only ban pesticides for 90 days, limiting their authority to protect public health. States like Kerala and Odisha, which banned pesticides like Paraquat, could not continue these bans due to the lack of central support. Similarly, Maharashtra’s call for action on five pesticides involved in the 2017 Yavatmal poisoning was unsuccessful.

Prof. K. Purushotham Reddy, an environmentalist, called for stronger involvement from the medical community in advocating for the ban of HHPs. Dr Rakesh Chenna and Dr Satish Narayana Chowdhury shared firsthand accounts of the suffering caused by Paraquat poisoning. Dr D. Dwarakanatha Reddy, president of the Indian Medical Association (Telangana), supported the push for banning Paraquat and other dangerous pesticides, committing to take the issue to higher authorities for resolution.