Summary
The reason is massive and unregulated use of pesticides and other agricultural chemicals in India's most intensively farmed state. According to an environmental report by Punjab's government, the modest-sized state accounts for 17 per cent of India's total pesticide use. The state's water, people, animals, milk and agricultural produce are all poisoned with the stuff.
Punjab was the totemic success of India's green revolution, a leap forward in agricultural productivity during the 1960s and 1970s that ended the subcontinent's periodic famines. It was based on the introduction of a few simple technologies -- including artificial fertilizers, pesticides and better seeds. In Punjab, especially, the benefits were massive."Punjab, the most stunning example of the green revolution in India, is now at the crossroads," the report states. "The present agricultural system in Punjab has become unsustainable and non- profitable... the state's agriculture has reached the highest production levels possible under the available technologies."See the full content of this document
Extract
Pesticides Punishing Children in Punjab
The Economist
IF Indian newspaper reports are to be believed, the children of Punjab are in the throes of a grey revolution. Even those as young as 10 are sprouting tufts of white and grey hair. Some are going blind. In Punjabi...See the full content of this document
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