Pesticide Delivery System in Apple Growing Belt of Kashmir Valley§ Baba S.H.*, Wani M.H., Zargar Bilal A., Wani S.A., Kubrevi S.S. Division of Agricultural Economics & Marketing, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar Campus, Srinagar-191 121, Jammu & Kashmir *Author for correspondence: Email: drshbaba@gmail.com
§Part of research work done under Horticultural Technology Mission sponsored research project entitled, “Fruit economy linkages and role in employment generation and rural upliftment in J&K” JEL Classification: Q13, Q16 Online published on 9 October, 2012. Abstract This study has looked into the existing pesticide delivery system in the apple growing region of Kashmir valley. Marketing system of pesticides in the valley is largely unregulated, characterized by the existence of a network of pesticide companies, viz., multinationals (MNCs) and nationals (NCs), authorized distributors/dealers, unlicensed traders and rampant availability of sub-standard/spurious pesticides. The value of all pesticides consumed in the state has been estimated at  361 million, of which 52.3 per cent is of NCs and 33.6 per cent is of MNCs and rest being of other companies. Of the total pesticides used in the state, 86 per cent are applied on apple. There are multiple channels of pesticide delivery in the valley. However, this study has discussed marketing channels of important fungicides, insecticides and acaricides. It has been observed that farmers pay a higher price for pesticides became of the presence of a number of intermediaries in the channel. The marketing efficiency has been relatively low in the channel where farmers purchase pesticides from the traders. The results have further revealed that farmers apply pesticides indiscriminately in violation of the scientific recommendations. About one-third of the pesticides available in the market are reported to be either sub-standard or spurious. The existence of unlicensed dealers/traders has further accentuated the magnitude of malpractices in the pesticide delivery system. Based on findings, the study has emphasized upon an effective regulation of pesticide trade through strict legislations so as to prevent marketing of spurious/sub-standard agro-chemicals. Top Keywords Pesticides, delivery system, spurious/sub-standard pesticides, apple, Kashmir valley, marketing channels. Top |