Chemical
Fertilisers & Pesticides
The pesticide business started in
Pakistan in 1954 with the import
of 254 metric tonnes of formulated
product, increasing to 20,648 metric
tonnes in 1986-87 and 44, 872 tonnes
in 1998. More than 70-80% of pesticides
used in this country are being used
on cotton crops. In 1997-98, pesticides
were used on 93.9% of the total
cropped area of cotton, 86.9% of
sugar cane, 70% of rice paddy, and
14.5% of fruit and vegetables. Use
of pesticides is increasing at the
rate of 25% a year.
As the result of a strong media
campaign by about 200 local, national
and Multinational companies with
a distribution network of some 6,000
dealers, farmers believe that it
is essential to use pesticides.
The import bill of pesticides increased
from Rs. 225 million in 1980-89
to Rs. 5272 million in 1996-97.
The sprayed area has increased from
1.8 million hectares to 3.8 million
hectares (18% of the cropped area)
in 1991. Due to a complex cropping
system and small land holdings,
ground spray is preferred, with
aerial spraying restricted to epidemics.While
playing a key role in protecting
plants, pesticide use also causes
problems like resistance in pests,
persistence of toxins in the eco-system,
and health problems for field workers,
food consumers and dealers. According
to a recent report by the Pakistan
Agricultural Research Council (PARC),
as many as 10,000 farmers are poisoned
annually by indiscriminate use of
pesticide in cotton growing rural
areas only.
In February 2000, the Punjab Assembly
was told that about 3,800 tonnes
of obsolete and outdated pesticides
were stored in the Punjab Agriculture
Department warehouses, but could
not be disposed off due to lack
of funds. An estimated 1, 935 stockpiles
of obsolete pesticides in the 41
agriculturally active districts
of Pakistan are threatening the
lives of thousands of residents.
Pesticide manufacture, import and
usage is controlled by the 'Agricultural
Pesticides Ordinance', 1971 and
the Agriculture Pesticide Rules,
1973. Until now 21 pesticides have
been de-registered and their import
banned. Imports of banned pesticides,
their illegal storage in godowns,
pilferage from warehouses and adulteration
are problems related to lack of
implementation of the pesticide
ordinance.
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