Weighing risks and benefits of pesticides on India’s farms

The global population currently stands at 7.9 billon and is expected to rise to 9.7 billion by 2050. To meet the food and nutrition needs of the burgeoning human population we need to produce more food. This demand of increased food for feeding the future generation is a major concern.

Although yield per hectare has doubled in the past years due to increased use of high yielding and hybrid varieties, fertilizers, crop protection chemicals, adoption of improved mechanization, land and water management practices etc., but major challenges to increase our productivity still exists. Approximately 25% of the global crop output is lost due to attacks by pests, weeds and diseases and thus agrochemicals have an increasing role to play in enhancing crop productivity.

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Most of the time we used to blame the pesticides for the consequences we are facing. However, tremendous benefits we have received from the usage of pesticides in forestry, public health, domestic sphere and of course, in agriculture, a sector upon which the Indian economy is largely dependent. Therefore, it is required to weigh all the risks against the benefits arising out of pesticide use to ensure a maximum margin of safety to the environment, wild life and human beings.

This is an excerpt. Read the original post here.