• 17 May, 2012

Punjab government on the slow track

After CSE raised the issue in 2005, the Punjab government constituted two committees, one was a High Powered Committee and the other an Expert Group. The two committees achieved nothing considerable- while the expert group held one meeting and the High Powered Committee none. The Punjab government ordered a study and immediate health remediation measures. Later, the government had decided to formulate the organic farming policy for the area but not much has happened there either.

• 16 March, 2011

Pesticide residues in blood of Punjab farmers

Pesticides are commonly used in India but this comes at great cost to human health. The Centre for Science and Environment decided to investigate the matter and looked at the agricultural heartland of Punjab. It found that  15 different pesticides in the 20 blood samples tested from four villages in Punjab. But what is more important to find out is how much of pesticide in blood is ‘safe’. Does a safety threshold level exist?