India: How the Pesticide Management Bill May Hurt Sales, Profits of Pesticide Manufacturers

By Financial Express|25 September 2020

The Pesticide Management Bill 2020 (PMB), which is tabled in the Rajya Sabha to replace the Insecticides Act, 1968, may hurt sales and profits of pesticide manufacturing companies, said Ajit Kumar, Chairman (Technical Committee), Crop Care Federation of India. Under PMB, farmers will also have to obtain the prescription before they can buy certain pesticides, which will pose a huge obstacle in the timely procurement of pesticides, Ajit Kumar told Samrat Sharma of Financial Express in an interview. Further, he explained how the bill could hurt Prime Modi’s vision to double farmers’ income. Here are the excerpts from the interview:

How will the pesticide companies be affected by the new bill?

Various proposed inclusions in the Pesticides Management Bill 2020 will have adverse effects on pesticide manufacturers, adversely affecting their sales. Also, if the licensing officer is satisfied that the holder of the license has contravened any of the provisions of this Act or rules made thereunder, the licensing officer may revoke the license. Further, if the government is of the opinion that the sale of certain pesticides is expedient or necessary to be stopped in the public interest, it may prohibit the distribution, sale, or use of the pesticide or a specified batch in such area and for such period not exceeding one year.

Do you think that the Pesticide Management Bill will hurt India’s agriculture system, including agrochemical exports?

PMB 2020 does not allow the export of pesticides that are banned in India even if those are approved for use in other countries like the USA, Europe, Japan, etc. Also, there is no requirement for the registration of a technical grade pesticide before importing any of its formulations in India. This means no generic version of technical grade pesticides can be manufactured by any other company which results in unfair advantages to imported formulations that may contain unregulated, low-grade, or even expired technical-grade pesticides sourced from an unapproved country.