Per-acre productivity: Increased import of insecticides ‘worrying’

Up 47%, value amounts to $110 million; termed hazardous.

FAISALABAD: The country is importing insecticides worth $110 million, which is a matter of concern, said University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan.

He stated while speaking at the annual function of Department of Entomology, UAF. Dean Faculty of Agriculture Prof Dr Muhammad Arshad and Department Chairman Prof Dr Jalal Arif also spoke on the occasion.

Addressing the participants, he said that import of insecticides went up by 47% to 23,033 tons in July-May 2013-14 from 15,692 tons in the same period of the last year.

He also added that the traditional methods of cultivation were keeping per-acre productivity at low levels and the average yield was just a quarter of regional countries.

He said that 50% of pesticides in the country are highly hazardous and their residues are a reason of the outbreak of the many diseases. He said that water containing pesticides, when used for drinking purposes, can be harmful, ranging from mild headaches and skin allergies to cancer.

Meanwhile, Arshad said that it is also the duty of pesticides agencies concerned to ensure distribution and sale of products to the farmers without compromising on ethical standards. He said that diseases limit the production of crops, vegetable and fruit.

Effective disease management is a prerequisite for high quality production. Its control includes certified disease-free seeds, timely sowing or planting in well-prepared, fertile soil and controlling weeds and insect pests. He said that the entomology department was making sincere efforts for the noble cause of controlling diseases.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 20^th, 2015.

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