agrochemicals after globalization: present scenario of toxicity pesticides in india

IRJMSH Volume 4 Issue 2 online ISSN 2277 – 9809

International Research Journal of Management Sociology & Humanities 285 http:www.irjmsh.com

Agrochemicals after Globalization: Present Scenario of Toxicity

Pesticides in India.

Dhere Amar M., Assistant Professor, Environmental Science,

Indira College of Commerce and Science,

Pune-411 033 M.S., India. (Affiliated to University of Pune)

E-Mail- [email protected]

Rajopadhye Vijay Vilas, Registrar, Indira College of Commerce and Science,

Pune-411 033 M.S., India. (Affiliated to University of Pune)

mailto:[email protected]


International Research Journal of Management Sociology & Humanities Page 1286 http:www.irjmsh.com

ABSTRACT

Rapid Globalisation of World economy and increasing concern for quality of environment. Past

research literature shows that international trade leads to more pollution and environmental

degradation through increased economic activities. Ambumozhi V. finds that various

agricultural practices effects on the environment. Ogha, 2002 predicted that, lack of regulatory

responses to shows possible damaging environmental effects. Though the present study

attempted to revels effects of free trade on agricultural technologies which causes various

environmental problems .Kym Anderson ,in 1992 through empirical analysis find that use of

fertilizers and pesticides will reduced in developed countries and even though it will lead to an

increases in developing countries. In 1955 pesticide production in India is 2839tonnes per year

which increased up to 74472tonnes in 1999. Pesticide use in India increases at 2.5% per year.

The most serious effects of pesticides are on human life and health. It has been reported that 3

million acute poisoning cases caused by pesticide poisoning in world wide every year. In that 2

million are suicide attempts and rest are occupational poisoning. Between 1991 and 1996 in

California EPA reported 3,991 cases of occupational poisoning by agricultural practices. Indian

farmers are generally poor, largely illiterate and have small land holding. In order to extract the

maximum benefit from the small land holding, they have simplistic tendency to use the chemicals,

having inadequate understanding of the correct dosage, method of application, disposal of

unused material and packaging. Pawar, in 2007 showed that, out of total poisoning cases in

study region about 18-19% farmers and farm laborers died due to accidental pesticide

poisoning. Pesticide residue also contaminated drinking water at very high concentration. Soil

salnisation, agricultural land transformation, losses in agro-biodiversity etc. environmental

problem’s gravity are increased after globalization or free trade. WTO is an institute responsible

for economic activity whose task is to bring together supply and demand in different ways

internationally. WTO formulates Multilateral Environmental Agreement (MEA) for regularising

impact of trade on environment. WTO in ministerial meeting the Committee on Trade and

Environment (CTE) promote environmental measures and sustainable development. But CTE

committee doesn’t enforce any norms for managing environmental pollution in agriculture

sector caused due to free trade. WTO’s role after trade libralisation and rising agro-

environmental problems not implemented forcefully to country members. Therefore there is

urgent attention paid for looking the agro-environmental problems. China in a year 2000



formulates Agro- Environmental Task Force for looking and solving environmental problems

arises due to modern agricultural activities.

Key Words- WTO, Globalisation. Economic development, pesticide poisoning, agro-

environmental problems.

INTRODUCTION

After globalization of World economy agriculture sector have been concerned for the quality

of environment because it has been transformed after globalisation. Indian agriculture

revolutionarised after fist green revolution. The first green revolution successor globalization

creates various environmental problems at world level1. In India out of the total geographical

area of 329 million hectares, about 175 million hectares are considered degraded. Along with

those other environmental problems like soil salination, air pollution, water pollution, threats to

bio-diversity etc developed after globalistion.

There are serious conflicts between free trade and the environment; while environmental

issues could be important challenges to the GATT and the WTO2. India is a founder member of

GATT in 1947 and WTO in 1995. The impact of WTO’s trade libralisation results anthropogenic

environmental alteration in agriculture3. Anderson and Struts (1996) identified a strong positive

correlation between producer subsidy equivalents and agrochemical use. Poor countries suffer

from agro environmental problems such as soil erosion and nutrient depletion, overgrazing and

deforestation4. WTO impact on pesticide use is foresting the agro-industrial sector. The sale of

pesticide is more than US $30 billion in year5. Today’s agriculture totally depends on chemical

pesticides and fertilizer. Globalization tends to large scale mono-cropping system with no or

minimal crop rotations, have reduces beneficial crop interactions. This will lead to loss of soil

micro-organisms and beneficial insects and disrupts other complimentary relationship on the

farm6. The most serious effect of pesticides is on human life and health. It has been reported that

3 million acute poisoning cases caused by pesticides occur worldwide every year but out of

which 2 million are suicide attempt and rest are occupational or accidental poisoning cases. As

India accounts for one third of total poisoning cases in the world7. In Central America it is

estimated that 400,000 people suffer acute pesticide poisoning each year, in Brazil alone 300,000

pesticide poisoning cases are reported annually8. Dr. Abdul Razzaq, MP Bangladesh blame over

WTO for promoting pesticides which have been degraded agricultural environment in



Bangladesh. These problems raised the attention of researchers for analyzing the agro-

environmental problems in India on the ground of globalization. This article reveals the role of

WTO over agro environmental and allied human health problems. This paper also suggests the

possible policies to WTO for reducing risk of agrochemical.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Agriculture and Industrial revolution has been limited to WTO. Though this will

linkages to natures in more particular form. There are several studies done over trade

liberalization and environmental setting9. But all these studies less specifically concentrate on the

agriculture pollution and human health problems related to chemical pesticides. After revealing

all literature collected from secondary database which helpful for analyzing use of chemical

fertilizer and pesticide in Indian agriculture. While some critical issues and case study are used

for revealing the role of WTO in agro environmental problems.

RESULT AND DISCUSSION

Table 1 Projected demand for food.

Commodity Annual demand Million MT

1995 2000 2010 2020

Food grains 185.1 208.6 266.4 343

Milk 62.0 83.8 153.1 271

Edible oil 5.1 6.3 9.4 13

Vegetables 65.7 80 117.2 168

Fruits 16.1 22.2 42.9 81

Meat,

Fish, eggs

4.4 6.2 12.7 27

Sugar 10.9 12.8 17.3 22



Fig. 1 Consumption of total plant nutrient per hectare of gross copped area.

Ref-www.indiastat.com

After independence the use of fertilizers in India in last 50 years has grown nearly 170

times10

. In 1950 use of fertilizer per hectare in India was 0.55kg but by 2001-02 this figure has

increased around 90.12kg per hectare. In year 2000 Andhra Pradesh use 179.2kg/hectare

chemical fertilizer which is any other states while eastern states use less than 10kg of chemical

fertilizers10

. The imbalance use of the chemical fertilizers leads to create various environmental

problems in Indian agriculture.

Urea is major nitrogenous fertilizer used in the world. After application of urea the N is lost

the form ammonia which became one of the reasons of acid rain11

. As well as nitrates produced

in soil leads to contaminate ground water. About 10mg/lit nitrate in water have causes of

metahaemoglobemenia in infants. Some nitrosamines formed by the reaction of nitrate with

secondary amines are suspected to be carcinogenic12

.

Table 2 Total Lead and Cadmium content

Fertilizer Lead mg/kg Cadmium mg/kg

Urea 4 1

SP 609 187



Rock phosphate 1135 303

Murate of potash 88 14

DAP 188 109

Ref. -Arora et.al.1996

Table 3 Nitrate concentration in ground water sample from Punjab and Maharashtra.

State and blocks Application of n

fertilizer kg/ha/yr.

N

mg/lit.

NO3

mg/lit

Ludhiyana(PB) 258 33 13.8

Ahmednagar,

Newasa (MS) 250 102 85

Source- Baswa et.al.1992 (Punjab) and Patil et.al.2003(Maharashtra)

Excess and injudicious use of chemical fertilizer i.e. urea rising nitrate levels in ground

water while lead and cadmium concentration are also built is soil. This has been raises the

question of farmers and farm workers health.



Table 4 Production of pesticides in India.

Year Production MT

1955-56 2836

1960-61 8448

1965-66 13951

1973-74 32742

1978-79 52528

1988-89 61100

1989-90 65800

1990-91 74300

1991-92 72809

1992-93 76933

1993-94 83428

1995-96 91913

1996-97 74472

Source - Pestology, 1999

Table 5 Pesticide usage by product type in India and World

Product type India(1997) World(1994)

Insecticide 52% 29%

Herbicide 16% 47%

Fungicide 30% 19%

Others 2% 5%

Source – Sharma, 1999



In India 400 chemical factories manufacturing 55 different basic pesticides. A total 164

pesticides registered for use in India. Pesticide use in India is increasing at 2-5% per annum7. Out

of these pesticides used, 805 are insecticides, 11% are fungicides and 7% are herbicides.

Consumption of all these pesticides in same duration has increased more than two times, i.e.

from 24305 tonnes to 61357 tonnes.14

.

There are wide ranges of regional variations in pesticide consumption in the country. In

the year 2000-01, states like Haryana, Punjab, U.P consuming more than 5000MT of technical

grades pesticides annually which came under category I. A.P, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerela, MP,

Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Orissa and Tamilnadu are consumed 1000-5000MT of pesticides

and recognized under category II. While category-III states under pesticides consumption in

between 100-1000MT are Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu Kashmir, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland,

Tripura, Delhi and other union territories(UT)8. This shows that due to unequal consumption

pattern leads to create an agro-environmental problems specifically high pesticide consumption

region.

Table 5 Usage of pesticide molecules in India and World.

Pesticide molecules India(1997) World(1994)

Organophosphate 50% 37%

Organochlorine 18% 6%

Carbonate 4% 23%

Synthetic Pyrethroids 19% 22%

Bio-pesticides 1% 12%

Source –Raghavan, 1999.

Organophosphate groups pesticides are dominate in Indian market. The

organochlorine group’s pesticides account 18% in Indian market. As organochlorine group



pesticides has been banned and phase on advanced countries India still uses some of these

products which have been caused adverse impact on environment and human health.

Pesticide pollution:-

The 108 people are died in first major accident involved due to parathion poisoning in

Kerela in 1953. The chemical pesticides affect on all components of environment. During arial

spraying of pesticides the amount of it fall on soil and it detortiate soil ecosystem depends on its

persistence time.

Table 6 Pesticides residues in soil

Pesticides Time for 95% disappearance (years)

Adrin 1-6

Chlordane 3-5

DDT 4-30

Dieldrin 5-25

Heptachlorine 3-5

Lindane 3-10

Telodrin 2-7

Source- Ganukar,1997

Aldrin in soil within 3 month converted into Dieldrin which is not only toxic but more

persistent in nature18

. Pesticides are also absorbed and transferred in crops from treated soil. The

uptake of BHC residue by maize7 bajara with 5.15 and 30 kg dosages respectively was below

tolerance limit, but at 3 ppm pesticides have high affinity towards tuberous crops15

. Absorption

of Aldrin by sweet potato, potato, onion is also reported20

. Pesticides residue in soil reduces the

per unit microbial populations and adverse effects on the earth warm population, predatory

mites, centipedes and beetles.



Table 7 Concentration of different pesticides found in

drinking water.

Pesticide Concentration mg/lit

2,4-D 100

Methoxy chlorine 30

Lindane 3

DDT 1

Chlordane 0.3

Heptachlor 0.1

Aldrin, Dieldrin 0.03

Source- Gahukar, 1997

Pesticide residue in soil and air washed through rain water and finally it reaches to

water resources. It has reported that chemical pesticides created water pollution.

Table 8 Some of the pesticides banned in other countries but used in India.

Alachlor * Caplafol * Carbaryl * Carbosulfan *

Dicofol * Diuron * Endosulfan * Maleic

Methyl parathion * Monocrotophos * Oxyfluorfon Methomyl *

Paraquat dichloride * DDT* Chlorobenzilate Phorate *

Zinc phosphide * Ziram * Tridemorph Thimeton *

Source - S. Jayraj.

The above mentioned pesticides has banned by other countries due to its consequences

on environment. But India till used such 47 organophospherous pesticides which has banned by

USA.



WTO and Agro-Environmental problems:-

Agriculture trade was first addressed directly by the Uruguay Round on Agriculture

(URRA) in 1994.WTO initiated trade liberlisation in agriculture which may improve economic

improvement of all country but which may cost for agro-environmental quality. Kym Anderson

reveals that effect of liberalizing trade in agriculture markets are negatively effects on

developing counties. WTO’s trade liberlisation will exploits poor in the developing countries and

make their country as environmental dumping ground. For that instance in January, 1995 the

Committee on Trade and Environment [CTE] was established to examine the issues involved in

trade and environment21

. On the WTO agreement the sanitary and phytosanitory measures

prevents the countries to check up the quality of imported goods. Though there is no any

restriction over distribution of toxic pesticides. In Guatemala in Central America common

market, Parquaet (pesticide) have highly toxic “Red” label which is responsible for acute

poisoning which have been downgraded to extremely toxic “Blue” label when it exported.

Actually WTO rules restrict policies based on how products are produced but not about products

effect on environment, workers and consumers5. Shrybman

23 noted that, WTO panels have never

ruled an environmental measure to be least trade restrictive policy opinion.

WTO’s impact of pesticide use is far reaching by means of Multilateral Environment

Agreement (MEA). MEA’s are agreement over restricting use of extremely toxic pesticide

methyl bromide which is again responsible for ozone depletion. But unfortunately there are few

or no of enforcement of this provisions.5

WTO allocates Codex index food safety. United States Environmental Working Group

found that there are 3,285 pesticide and crop combination for which codex has standards but out

of which 1539 are illegal in the united states24

. For example codex allows residues of DDT on

grain meat and dairy. WTO’s negotiations are underway to phase out 12 Persistent Organic

Pollutants (POP’s) which is most toxic substance. Out of that POP’s are pesticides but yet not

banned in trade25

. WTO have supremacy power for looking issues of pesticides toxicity but they

don’t restrict toxic agrochemical which are responsible affect on environment and more

specifically on human health.


International Research Journal of Management Sociology & Humanities 96 http:www.irjmsh.com

WTO agreements promote industrial agriculture globally in several ways. Those who

depend on least pesticide are now using more amounts of chemical toxic grade pesticides. The

agricultural practices again transformed into highly pesticide dependent26

. Biotechnological;

approach for altering and modifying genetic plant/crop varieties all over accelerates pest

resistance and promote use of pesticide. GM crop also threat to rapidly shrinking of biodiversity

which is essential for sustainable and non-pesticide agriculture27

. WTO impacts pesticide use by

dangerously undermine pesticides regulation and by fostering industrial pesticide centered

agriculture.

Mr.Suhel Ahmed Choudary, Secretary of Ministry of Commerce, Govt. of Bangladesh

criticized that WTO did not have any agreement specially on environment issue so Committee on

Trade and Environment(CTE) only identify agreements could be classified as mean’s in order to

reconstruct (reconcile)issues between trade and environment28

.

It is clearly reveals that WTO not take any interest for building a enforcing a common

policy for trade on agriculture. Due to that developed countries banned hazardous pesticides and

agrochemicals and which are transformed towards developing and under developed countries.



CASE STUDY

Down! Down! Pesticides

Go! Go! WTO

The 580 women labourers in Chennai gather for opposition the WTO pesticides

promotion policies. The some of that share pesticide poisoning experiences.

“Anjama is a women worker related with 54years pesticide spraying experience. She had been

to carry heavy, metal pesticide spray pumps in the course of her work. She has lost her

fingernails from the use of paraquate pesticide. In addition her eyesight has greatly detortiate

and suffers skin irritation and difficulty in breathing. She explains “I feel suffocated, I cannot

breathe and when they gave eye goggles we were blinded when the spray mist covered these

goggles. Whatever protective clothes they give us useless as e could die to beat stroke while

under sun “

Oswal quintal of the Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture (LESA) network

cited the cases of water in the Tamilnadu landing fertility due to contamination by pesticides and

fertilizers. He also explained that “water as being siphoned off for big business and corporate

tourist project at the expense of providing drinking water to the people”. The group of women

worker resists agrochemical companies and the pesticides they are pushing.

The women agitators blamed WTO for corporate interests who cause negative

impacts on the resources, land, people, and culture. The group of women opposes WTO policies.

They are making human chain and reveling various facts and stories about pesticide poisoning.

Ref -

Policy suggestions:-

1. For trade liberalization concern the China commit the Agro-environment Task Force for

looking issues of agro-environment. On the ground of that WTO and other countries will

build such task force for looking various problems in agriculture30

.



2. In WTO trade issue gives the preference to Environmentally Preferable Products (EPP)

which are developed by creating less pollution and also improve human health.8

3. WTO will take necessary step in formulating the efficiency body to address the issues of

agro-environment, which also impacts compulsory provisions to every country.

4. Now it is right time to take urgent step over banning of toxic chemicals in agriculture.

References-

1. Salam Addus (2006), Environmental implication of India’s foreign trade under the

Liberalized WTO Regime: A Review, in WTO and India (Edt.) pp 132-182.

2. Anette Gudum(1997), Link between trade and environment- theoretical and empirical

evidence (http://www.econ.ku.dk/cfb/trade/papers/gudum.pdf).

3. Anderson K and Strutt A C , (1996), On measuring the environmental impact of

Agricultural trade Liberalization, in Agriculture, trade and Environment : Discovering

and measuring the critical linkage (Edt.), Westview Press Co., Boulder, pp. 151-172.

4. Scott M Swinton, (2002), “Trade Issues and Agro-Environment Concern: North vs

South,” research paper presented at IAAE Symposium on Policy and Economic Issues in

trade Liberalization Negotiations American Agricultural Economics annual meeting,

Long Beach, California, pp- 28-31.

5. Skip Spitzer (2000), WTO and Pesticide Reform (http://www.panna.com)

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8. Free trade Agreement Encourage Pesticide Use- At the Expense of the People

(http://www. rap.chile.com)

9. Report No:70, (2004) Environmental debates in the WTO: Defining Bangladesh’s

Interest(http://wwww.cpd-bangladesh.org)

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http://www.panna.com/

http://www/

http://wwww.cpd-bangladesh.org/

http://www.etagiculture.com/



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14. Fertilizer use data available at http://www.indiastat.com

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millennium,” Pestology Special Issue,pp-235-242.

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Ph.D. thesis, University of Udaipur, Udaipur.

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in Some crops” Ph.D. Thesis, University of Udaipur, Udaipur.

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21. Anbumozhi W (2000), “WTO and Agriculture; Exploring the Environmental Linkages”,

(http://www.wto.org/english/res_e/booksp_

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24. Lori Wallach (1999), “International Harmonization of Social, Economic and

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25. Bello V (1994) “Dark Victory,” Pluto Press.

26. Genetically Modified crops and their impacts on Sustainable Agriculture is vast

(http://www.panna.org).

http://www.indiastat.com/

http://www.wto.org/english/res_e/booksp_

http://www.panna.org/



27. Food Sovereignty women in agriculture(http://www.navadanya.org/publications/women-

agri-htm).

28. Dhere A. M. et al., (2006) “WTO and Pesticides,” Research paper Presented at

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agrochemicals after globalization: present scenario of toxicity pesticides in india

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