HYDERABAD (January 28 2004): The Sindh government has constituted a high-level committee under the chairmanship of Agriculture and Research Director-General Malik Muhammad Akram to finalise the cases of pesticides companies reported to have been involved in violating rules of Pesticides Ordinance-1971 amended in 1997.

The committee, consisted of the director, Planning and Monitoring and the deputy secretary, Technical-1 of the agriculture department, will examine the reply of show-cause notice in the light of factual position and law, and if their reply were found unsatisfactory they would be provided an opportunity to personally appear before the committee to plead their cases. The committee then furnish recommendation for action.

Meanwhile, registration of 19 pesticides firms and companies, which have failed to respond to the show-cause notices have been cancelled with immediate effect. he 19 pesticides companies include Orion Chemicals, Zanix Agro Chemicals, Legonda Agro Services, Sunrise Agro Chemicals, Agri-King (Pvt) Ltd, Shandar Agro Chemicals, Thakar Agro Chemicals, National Agro Chemical, Farm Eco Enterprises, Global Enterprises, Diamond Distributors (Pvt) Ltd, Agri Pest Management (Pvt) Ltd, Kings ARP Link, Sharp Agro Business.

Pakistan Growers Agro (Pvt) Ltd, Farm Care Services, Quality International Traders (Pvt) Ltd, Help Agro Chemicals, and Hera Pesticide Corporation.

When contacted the director, Plan Protection Agriculture Extension, said the government was fully alive to marketing sub-standard pesticides, which had not only adversely affected the agriculture production, but also had negative impact on fertility of land, and decided deal with all those, who are engaged in this nefarious trade with heavy hand.

He said an extensive campaign would be launched to arrest the marketing of sub-standard and spurious pesticides all over the province with the co-operation of district government to avert production losses in future.

Courtesy Business Recorder