Horti Dept launches drive to curb spurious agro chemicals

ZT News Network

Srinagar: On the directions of the Administrative Department, Horticulture Department, Kashmir, has launched a campaign of Sampling of Pesticides throughout the valley.

Director Horticulture Kashmir Ajaz Ahmad Bhat has mobilized all the Insecticide Inspectors under his control with the direction to ensure each and every establishment dealing with Pesticides/Insecticides is covered and pesticide sample wherever necessary is lifted.

In today’s campaign, Director Horticulture himself lead the teams in District Pulwama and Shopian where 24 samples were drawn for analysis. The Director warned the Pesticide dealers to sell the recommended quality pesticides otherwise strict action shall be taken against the defaulters.

“It must also be ensured that the establishments are operating as per law and having relevant papers as well. Although sampling of Pesticide is a regular and a routine matter for the Department to ensure availability quality of pesticide to the growers”, Horticulture Department, Kashmir said in a statement today.

Director Horticulture further said that during this year alone around 140
samples have been drawn from all the Districts of valley and results of almost all the samples were satisfactory. During various meetings, Director Horticulture stressed for frequent sampling and imparting training and awareness to orchardists for spraying like recommended doze at proper and right time under the guidance of Departmental officers as per the recommendation of the spray schedule.

Commenting on the incidence of higher scab in orchards this year, the Department said that in consultation with SKUAST-K “it has revised the spray schedule and got it published in new papers and conveyed through other mediums as well. The early snow fall during the last year has also hampered the removal of fallen leaves/twigs etc from orchards where inoculum persists.”