 "Sale of pesticides worth Rs 18.82 crore banned over quality issues in Maha")
The Maharashtra agriculture department has banned the sale of pesticides and fertilisers worth Rs 18.82 crore in Akola district after an inspection showed that they did not meet quality standards, officials said.
To ensure the supply of good quality inputs to farmers ahead of the Kharif season, the department collected samples of pesticides and fertilisers from 63 godowns.
Of these, the samples of 36 companies had various deficiencies, the department said in a release on Monday.
The department then banned the sale of these companies' stocks, worth about Rs 18.82 crore, lying in the godowns, it said.