(file photo) Official testing in Jammu and Kashmir has foundpesticide residues above permissible limits in 58 of 1,489 fruit and vegetable samples tested between 2023 and 2026, according to data tabled in the Lok Sabha.
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Abdul Rashid Mir, a farmer from Pulwama, about 35 km south of Srinagar, harvested his apple crop barely four days after spraying a fungicide on his 10-kanal orchard. The fungicide he used requires a pre-harvest interval of more than 20 days.“There are no specific guidelines regarding pre-harvest intervals,” Mir said.Farmers in the Valley often harvest horticultural produce and vegetables without observing the recommended waiting period after pesticide application, raising concerns over pesticide residues in food entering local markets.Official testing in Jammu and Kashmir has found pesticide residues above permissible limits in 58 of 1,489 fruit and vegetable samples tested between 2023 and 2026, according to data tabled in the Lok Sabha. The 3.9 per cent non-compliance rate was higher than the national average of 3.1 per cent , with 2,223 of 70,652 samples tested across 23 states and Union Territories found to have residues exceeding the limits prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. The testing was conducted under the Monitoring of Pesticide Residues at National Level (MPRNL) programme, which has been in operation since 2005-06. The data comes amid concerns over the practice of harvesting crops soon after pesticide application. Sources said that the authorities had only recently incorporated a waiting period into their pesticide use schedule. Agriculture experts say observing the recommended pre-harvest interval the period between the final pesticide application and harvesting — is essential to allow pesticide residues to decline to permissible levels. Tariq Rasool Rather, Professor of Plant Pathology, SKUAST-K, emphasized that “strict adherence to pesticide label recommendations, particularly the pre-harvest interval (PHI), is essential to ensure that residues on agricltural produce remain within the prescribed maximum residue limits (MRLs) at harvest. Rather added that under the HADP-18 project, “Minimisation of Pesticide Use in Agriculture,” the PHIs of most commonly recommended pesticides have been estimated and incorporated into the SKUAST-K Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Guide for Farmers. “Sustained awareness and capacity-building programmes on the safe, judicious and need-based use of pesticides have contributed to an estimated 25 per cent reduction in pesticide use in Kashmir between 2022 and 2025”, Rather said . Excessive pesticide useFarmers say pesticide use has increased significantly over the past 10 to 15 years, with more frequent spraying now common in the Valley’s apple and vegetable orchards.“We used to apply barely six to seven sprays a season. Now, the number has increased to 12 to 14,” said Tariq Ahmad Mir, an apple orchadist from Shopian. He said that vegetables grown between apple trees are also exposed to pesticide sprays. A 2010 study published in the Indian Journal of Medical and Paediatric Oncology estimated that farmers in Kashmir’s orchards used about 7,750 metric tonnes of fungicides and 3,186 metric tonnes of insecticides annually across nearly 200,000 hectares of orchard land. The study noted that while farmers followed 10 recommended spray schedules between March and November, many also carried out 15 to 20 additional, unscheduled sprays during the season.“Farmers need to follow the recommended dose and pre-harvest interval for each pesticide. Repeated or indiscriminate spraying, particularly when crops are harvested soon afterwards, can increase the risk of residues exceeding permissible limits,” said an official from the Horticulture Department. Published on August 13, 2026
