Pest Control

There are some pesticides which are banned in India. The CIB & RC examines and periodically reviews all pesticides and their usage. Some of them are banned from registration itself. In some cases, a pesticide gets banned even after the registration procedure if it leads to serious environmental or public health concerns. Some pesticides are designated for "restricted use". These are used for prescribed purposes and by authorised personnel after obtaining the appropriate Government license.

There are basically two forms of Pesticides available including concentrates and ready-to-use (RTU). The Concentrates are required to be mix in recommended doses with solvents like water or other carriers for achieving a diluted liquid that can be injected, sprayed, or applied to target areas. Some concentrates come in powder form and they are mixed with a bait material prior for its usage in case of rodenticide. The concentrates as well as RTUs come in various form like liquid, gel, powder (dust), cake or granular form. These are easy to apply through various ways like sprayers, dusters, manual placement or specialised applicators. It is advised to use all RTU pesticides that are available over the counter after carefully reading the label instructions.

There are some household pesticides that are used only for professional means. The concentrates which are used by professional pest controllers cannot be used as such because of their toxicity. To get the intended dosage on target, technicians are required to mix these concentrates with a carrier such as water or solvent and then spray. This mixing needs to be done in dosages recommended by pesticide manufacturers as mentioned on the label. The RTU products should only be used at home after carefully reading the label instructions. Professional pest managers from a well known company are well suited for carrying out pest control in the home.

The term pesticide refers to the substance used for elimination of the pest such as insects (insecticide), weed or herb (weedicide or herbicide), bacteria (bactericide), acarid (acaricide), bird (avicide), rodent (rodenticide), fungus (fungicide), virus (viricide), germs (germicide), microbes (microbicide), and others. It can be stated thart all insecticides are pesticides; however all the pesticides are not essentially insecticides. The insecticides are grouped as per their usage against specific insects like termiticides against termites or according to the stages of their growth like larvicides against larvae or adulticides against adult mosquitoes.

Most of the pesticides are chemicals that possess a toxic effect on their target pest. However, they differ in their mode of action and are designed for targeting the pest on the basis of its biology and behaviour. Some pesticides are stomach poisons that are ingested by the pest while some are contact poisons that kill pests when target comes into contact with the poison and it enters their body via the skin or other body openings. Some pesticides interfere with the process of blood coagulation, while others affect the nervous system. There are some non-toxic pesticides like Insect Growth Regulators or IGRs that do not directly kill the pest but interfere with its growth and thus preventing it from leading a normal existence resulting in death. All pesticides have label instructions with specifications about the recommended dosage.

In India, the usage of insecticides is regulated by the India law comprising of The Insecticides Act, 1968 and Insecticides Rules, 1971. These acts manage and control the import, transport, registration process, manufacture, distribution, sale, and use of insecticides so that it does not poses risk to human beings or animals others, across India. All pesticides are required to undergo the registration process with the Central Insecticides Board (CIB) & Registration Committee (RC) prior to their availability for use or sale. In short, all insecticides (pesticides) in India are listed on the "Schedule" of the Insecticides Act, 1968. The Registration Certificate mandates that there should be proper label on the packaging indicating the nature of the insecticide, active ingredient, target pest(s), composition, recommended dosage, safety precautions and other details.

Humans have been using the pesticides since before 500 BC for the preventing the damage to their crops. The first pesticide was sulphur and various toxic chemicals like arsenic, mercury and lead were being applied to crops for killing pests by 15^th century. Nicotine Sulfate was extracted from tobacco leaves in 17^th century for its use as an insecticide. In the 19th century, the two more natural pesticides were introduced including pyrethrum and rotenone that were derived from the roots of tropical legumes. Paul Müller found in 1939 that DDT was a very effective insecticide. It quickly became the most widely-used pesticide throughout the world. However, in the 1960s, DDT was found to prevent many fish-eating birds from reproducing and thereby poses a big threat to biodiversity. DDT was also found to result in birth defects in animals and humans. As of now, DDT is banned in many countries and in developing nations it is used for killing mosquitoes and other disease-carrying insects that causes malaria and other tropical diseases.

The use of pesticide has increased many fold since 1950, and approx 2.5 million tons of industrial pesticides are used each year. Glyphosate is currently the most used herbicide in the world. Prior to applying a single dose of pesticide, Gardeners should read and follow the instructions by manufacturers carefully those were printed on the container and label. It is recommended to store pesticides carefully in a secured location. Pesticides and other poisonous chemicals should be kept in their original containers for eliminating any confusion regarding its contents. Pesticides are also harmful to the pets and they should be kept away from treated areas.

The disposal of pesticides has to be done in a proper manner. The Lakes and rivers can get contaminated by pesticides if not used correctly. You should never use pesticides nearby these water sources. Also, you should not use it on neighbouring properties. It is better to avoid using pesticides in garden areas that grows edible crops during harvest seasons. As per the instructions mentioned in the label, the pesticides should be disposed accordingly. You should never discard a container with left over pesticide remaining in it. The improper disposal like burning containers or loitering may lead to the contamination of water supplies.