The Karnataka government today announced a ban on the usage and sale of endosulfan, a generic pesticide, in the state. The state cabinet passed a decision in this regard and the ban will come into effect immediately for a temporary period of three months.
“The aerial spraying of endosulfan was undertaken by the Karnataka Cashew Development Board in many villages of Puttur, Belthangady and Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka to control T-mosquito pest in cashew crop. This resulted in a wide range of health problems for inhabitants of these villages. The cabinet has decided to ban the use of this pesticide under Section 27 (1) of Insecticides Act, 1968, with immediate effect,” said Dr V S Acharya, minister of higher education.
Briefing reporters on the outcome of cabinet meeting, here today, he said people in parts of Dakshina Kannada district have suffered from chronic health problems ranging from neurological disorders to congenital malfunctions like allergy, asthma, stillborn, brain tumour, cancer, mental retardation among others. The state government will write a letter to the Central government seeking a permanent ban on the usage of Endosulfan across the state as per Section 27 (2) of the Act.
Karnataka is the second state to ban use of endosulfan after Kerala which banned the use of the pesticide four years ago. “We have banned the use and sale of the pesticide using the provisions in the Act. It would be a punishable offence, if anyone sells this pesticide,” Dr Acharya said.
It may be recalled here that the European Union (EU) has been pushing for a global ban on Endosulfan by proposing to list it in the Stockholm Convention as a persistent organic pollutant (a toxic substance that is not biodegradable and persists in the environment).
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Association of India (PMFAI) has said the ban on the pesticide was intended to benefit the European crop protection industry.
“Though the EU region accounts for only 8 per cent of the world’s agricultural land, it is a world leader in chemical and pesticide trade. However, its stake in the global endosulfan market has reduced drastically over the years. Patented pesticides are being promoted by EU in recent years in order to replace the demand for endosulfan. There are concerted efforts to manoeuvre trade through international conventions and trade restrictive practices,” PMFAI president Pradip Dave, said.
The global crop protection industry is worth $40 billion and the top three companies alone account for over 50 per cent of this market. All these three companies, Dave said, were European.
Endosulfan is the third largest selling insecticide worldwide. Invented in Germany over 55 years ago, today it accounts for a global market in excess of 40 million litres valued over $300 million.
Endosulfan is a broad spectrum, generic insecticide used in a variety of crops to control over 60 different pests. The unique chemistry of endosulfan has ensured that the farmer is able to protect his farm ecosystem while dealing with pest infestation. Farmers used endosulfan extensively in cross pollinated crops where successful honey bee pollination plays an important role.