Impending Catastrophe from Chemical Pesticides

Paying its annual lip service to the issue of toxicity and ecological compatibility, Pesticides Association of India (PAI), sought to paint a picture of the food requirements for 1.3 billion people by 2020, unmindful of the fact that the issue is not the quantity of food alone rather it is the quality of grains and the toxic impact on soil, water and food chain contamination as well. Annually the pesticide industry, the largest in Asia, produces 90, 000 million tonne of it. According to a study 55.1 per cent of farm vegetables are contaminated with the pesticides and 10 per cent of them are exceed acceptable limits. At its 38th annual session, PAI blamed high incidence of pesticides related diseases on the "indiscriminate" and "injudicious" use of these chemicals. It also attributed the same reason to the Immunisation of pests and the resurgence of diseases.

"Nature alone cannot feed us. Tomorrow's population cannot be fed using yesterdays' methods. The pesticides industry plays a crucial role in crop protection to the extent of 30 per cent of total agricultural production," says Rajju Shroff, chairperson, PAI.

Despite continuous reporting of pesticides entry into our food chain, there is no effective mechanism to address the ongoing poisoning. It is surprising that there are agricultural scientists who on the one hand cry hoarse over the hazards due to persistence of the pesticide residues in the environment, on the other hand they are one with chemical pesticides industry.

The uniformity sought by the industry in the picking up of samples by pesticide inspectors is fraught with dangerous consequences. Because what it implies is that the laboratories which do not promote the industry interest should be proven wrong or be made to change its stance as was done earlier by the Haryana Agricultural University in the early 1980s in the synthetic pyrethoids case, says Devinder Sharma, a food safety expert.

As of now 164 pesticides are registered for use here and there is a proposal to make the registration process the fastest in the world. Indian pesticide industry is governed by the Insecticides Act, 1986 and Insecticide Rules 1971. Strangely, India does not have a comprehensive national pesticide policy to ensure food safety. Discounting any hazards due to pesticides in his state, Parsottam Rupala, minister of agriculture, Gujarat, said there is no such incident that points to any harm due to these chemicals. We are not friendly with the industry when it comes to farmer's interest, he added although there are evidences contrary to such claims. Rupala even said, farmers drinking pesticides cannot be cited as a reason for doing away with the pesticides.

The government has ignored almost all the linkages between pesticides, environment and human health owing to the hectic lobbying by the Rs 3,500 crores worth pesticides industry. The endosulfan tragedy of Kasaragod district in Kerela is a case in point. As DDT, one of 12 most toxic persistent organic pollutants (POPs) was partially banned two decades ago, today we come across cases where DDT is found in breast milk. Its continued use to control mosquito has led to its leakage in agricultural land traces of which will remain in the soil for years to come. The existing laws do not deal with the problem at source, therefore, there is a need to intervene and avoid disastrous toxic consequences in near future, says Ravi Agarwal, chief coordinator, Shristi.

The data from the International Development Research Centre, Canada shows that every year about 10,000 people die and another 400,000 suffer from various effects of pesticide poisoning in developing countries. India accounts for one third of pesticide poisoning cases in the third world. Farm workers are the worst affected. Cases of blindness, cancer, premature delivery, abortions, deformities, diseases of liver and nervous system from pesticide poisoning have been identified in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The alarming rise of pesticide poisoning is attributed to increasing number of toxic chemicals and their large scale use without proper testing of their toxic properties. A number of such chemicals banned in the western countries are being dumped in the third world countries.

The pesticides industry says, pesticides have led to food sufficiency in our country ignoring the low quality of our food grains. Its quality can be gauged from the fact our food grains were found unacceptable in the International markets and were returned. The sixty millions of food grains which is lying in the Food Corporation of India's (FCI) godowns is there because of its sub-standard quality, adds Agarwal. "Had FCI been a private firm it would have gone bankrupt because of the loss it has caused to the exchequer," said Jai Shroff, director, United Phosphorus Ltd. although in a different in context. Since the government is unwisely supporting the chemicals which leads to the production of low quality food grains such instances are likely to be repeated in future.

In the mid 80s, there were reports of 37 suicide deaths in Warangal in Andhra Pradesh but Indian government did not take cognisance of it. In 1997-98 again the spate of over 200 suicide deaths in Warangal and several other states. Responding to these deaths, Chandra Babu Naidu, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister ironically sought the help of psychiatrists, informs Devendra Sharma.

The average usage of pesticides is 450 gms per kg but since only 30 percent of our land is sprayed with pesticides therefore, the average is dubious. According to an estimate 10,000 cotton growers have committed suicide till date. Government statistics say India incurs a loss of about Rs 50,000 crores annually due to pests which have become pesticide resistant over the years. It has been estimated that yield losses range from 21-46 percent in different crops. The Central Insecticides Board and the Registration Committee for its harmful effects in our country review the pesticides usage. But the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in our country is almost non-existent.

It is evident that we are relying too much on chemical pesticides even though other safer methods such as IPM are available. Due to a strong lobby from the pesticide industry in the country, synthetic chemical pesticides remain as the only control mechanism for pests. Although IPM has been very successfully applied in many countries, in India nothing much has been done about it except on papers. Similarly, organic farming, a safe and sustainable method, has hardly received any attention. Farmers engaged in organic farming are not given the same subsidies as the pesticide intensive farming and markets for organic produces in the country are rare.

According to the National Science Academy of America, in 1930-31 the crop yield in the Indian sub-continent identical. Dr Norman Borlaug who advocated the now outdated Green Revolution technique which the pesticide industry is still parroting interestingly said, we have to choose between starvation and pesticides because the latter is like medicines. Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations has more than enough proof on hand to indicate that our crops cannot be protected indefinitely by poisoning the 'enemy'. This has not stopped us from waging our absurd chemical war against insects.


Contrary to the disastrous consequences like those of Kasargod about which Rachel Carson wrote in Silent Spring. Disturbed by the profligate use of synthetic chemical pesticides after World War II, Carson warned the public about the long term effects of misusing pesticides. In 1962, Carson challenged the practices of agricultural scientists and the government, and called for a change in the way humankind viewed the natural world. Ignoring all these evidences Shroff, the PAI chaiman says, together with the farmers, we can improve upon the achievements of the green revolution for greater prosperity.

Carson attacked the chemical industry and the governments and reminded us that we are a vulnerable part of the natural world subject to the same damage as the rest of the ecosystem. Testifying before Congress Carson called for new policies to protect human health and the environment, its high time we in India too paid heed to her caveat.