FSSAI urged states to establish an Inter-ministerial Committee to reduce pesticide use | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
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FSSAI urged states to establish an Inter-ministerial Committee to reduce pesticide use

Posted 24 Aug 2024

2 min read

Inter-ministerial Committee will focus on reducing pesticide use, implementing control measures, and developing strategies to monitor and regulate pesticide application at the farmer level.

  • The initiative aims to ensure food safety, safe and sustainable agricultural practices and protect consumers from health risks.

Pesticides and its Usage in India

  • Pesticides are used to kill, prevent, reduce, destroy or repel a pest. It broadly constitutes insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, and bio-pesticides.  .
    • Herbicides (kill/control the growth of weeds) have the largest market share at 44% (as of 2023)
  • >60,000 tonnes of chemical pesticides are used annually (b/w 2019-20 and 2021-22).
    • India's consumption is 0.5 kg/hectare(compared to 17 kg/hectare in some countries)
  • States with highest Consumption: Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Telangana
  • Regulated under the Insecticides Act, 1968.

Impact of pesticides

  • On humans: Leads cancer, affect the hormone or endocrine system. E.g. Acephate (classified as Potential Carcinogens by the US EPA). 
  • On Agriculture: Decline of Pollinators, etc. 
  • On Environment:   Surface and Groundwater contamination, affect non-target plants, fish, etc. 

Measures to be Taken

  • Encourage Integrated Pest Management, Bio-pesticides
  • Establish appropriate body to administer the Insecticides Act, 1968. (Standing Committee on Chemicals and Fertilizers)
    • The Act is administered by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, and is kept outside the purview of the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals.

Initiatives Taken

Global Level

  • Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
  • Financing Agrochemical Reduction and Management (FARM) programme implemented  by UNEP and other agencies and financed through Global Environment Facility (GEF). 

India

  • The Pesticide Management Bill, 2020
  • National Pest Surveillance System, an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based platform 
  • Tags :
  • FSSAI
  • FARM Programme
  • Pesticide
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