Soon, raids in fruit markets to check pesticide content

The Centre will carry out raids at fruits and vegetables market across the city to ascertain whether pesticides and chemicals were being used to ripen them. Worried over the presence of pesticide residues in fruits especially in mangoes, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked the Government to find out if they contained such chemicals by carrying out surprise inspections in fruits and vegetables markets.
A bench of Chief Justice D Murugesan and Justice Jayant Nath asked the Agriculture Ministry to carry out inspections to find the presence of any chemical in fruits, especially in mangoes, and take action against the persons responsible for that.
“This matter is concerned with public health and must be taken seriously. Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) must hurry up with policies regarding the use of pesticides in agriculture,” the court said. While submitting before the court about presence of harmful pesticides in fruits and vegetables, advocate and petitioner Sugriva Dubey told the court on Wednesday, “Ninety nine per cent of the mangoes that we eat today are artificially grown. A chemical is applied on the fruit which triggers its growth in 12 hours. It is hazardous to health.”
The bench slammed the Government saying that the fact that this matter has been going on from last three years clearly shows sloppiness on the part of the Government. “The city Government must carry out raids or inspections in the markets and file a report within 15 days regarding the presence of pesticides,” the bench said.
Ministry of Agriculture told the court that they will submit their report within 15 days on the use of pesticides in farming. “The Governments have been asked to respond many times. We can’t wait for their reports as by the time they will file a response, the season for mangoes will be over. We need an immediate solution,” pleaded Dubey.
The petitioner alleged that mangoes brought from markets like Azadpur, Vishwas Nagar, Gazipur Mandi and IP extension had enormous amount of harmful pesticides. The petition also said that mangoes were laced with oxytocin and other chemicals like calcium carbide. The chemicals lead to various health hazards like headaches, depression, mental disorder and other diseases.
The objections on the presence of pesticide residue in fruits and vegetables being sold in the markets across the city have been raised time and again. In 2010, the high court had taken cognizance of the matter after a petition was filed. Since then, the court has been asking concerned government authorities to inquire and file a report on how to tackle this health hazard.