DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Amidst the ongoing drive against spurious fertiliser and pesticide dealers in the state launched on the directions of Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann, Punjab Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department on Saturday seized a huge stock of unauthorised pesticides from a Pick-up truck coming from Haryana to supply these agriculture inputs to farmers in Bathinda and nearby districts.

The development came close on the heels of the the Agriculture department seizing 1200 litres of spurious pesticides manufactured by M/s Woodland Agritec India (HR), Kaithal from Bathinda on July 18, 2024. Divulging details about the seizure, Punjab Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian said that acting on a reliable information regarding influx of spurious pesticides by Haryana based persons to sell them to farmers at lucrative prices, teams of Agriculture Department Bathinda led by Chief Agriculture Bathinda laid a Naka at Block Phul in Bathinda and found huge quantity of unauthorised pesticides loaded in a pick-up truck, stopped during the checking.

He said that the teams have seized around 4.48 quintals in powder form and 34 litres of different pesticides including 400kg cartap hydrochloride, 20kg root tech, 12 litre paraquat dichloride, 20kg accephate, 4 litre azoxystrobin+tebuconazole, 18 litre tiger (bio plant protection), 5kg thiamethoxam and 3kg emamectin benzoate. The seized stock of unauthorised pesticides belongs to Jaswant Rasayan, Coromandel and Gujrat Pesticides, which are not allowed to sell pesticides in the state of Punjab.

The Agriculture Minister said that samples of different pesticides have also been drawn as per the Insecticides Act 1968 & Rules 1971 and the department has also initiated the process to lodge an FIR in this matter. Notably, the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department had recently cancelled the licences of two fertiliser companies for supplying substandard Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) to the cooperative societies in the state.

Director Agriculture Jaswant Singh said that all chief agriculture officers have been directed to tighten the noose around spurious fertiliser and pesticide dealers and the sampling of fertilisers and pesticides is being done continuously in the districts, besides ensuring appropriate action on priority basis if any complaint regarding substandard/spurious fertilisers or any other agricultural products come to notice.
(editor@dailyworld.in)