Famines and Pesticides

A study of history is the most engaging way to secular progress. Learning is fundamentally easier than abstraction for the average individual. Neither flashes of inspiration nor propaganda can substitute rigorous review of relevant realities.

Biblical plagues by locust swarms preceded the Great Irish Potato famine. Grapes are important ingredients of the European diet, so fungal attacks in vines were more serious than natural in Asian and African countries. The observation that copper irrigation pipes somehow helped in fungal control gave early impetus to the development of metallic fungicides. Pesticide development was centered during the dawn of the 20th century in Europe. This is why fungicides preceded other pesticide types.

Insecticide research received a fillip when Germany decided to develop nerve poisons. It was fortunate that the country lost World War II in time. The other major loser was Japan, and its insect-ravaged rice crop proved to be a convenient outlet for pesticide companies of hapless German pesticide companies. India had already lost more than 3.5 million lives before the first half of the last century was over. A bacterial infection threatened rice output when independence dawned. That is why the Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine & Storage was born.

Famines occur due to more than one kind of reason. Inclement weather and extreme forms of civil strife between communities and nations, join debilitating pest attacks in preventing the laity from essential and adequate food supplies. Pesticides save lives. Freedom from hunger due to pest attacks is a concrete contribution of this industry.

Pesticides bring stability and assurance to every user family. Investments in land preparation, seeds, fertilization, and water, may mean bring financial ruin if weeds take over fields, if fruiting is affected, or if the plants themselves succumb to diseases.

Pesticide technologies are multi-disciplinary. They are sophisticated products and require skill sets for prescribed use. Many manufacturers spend as much on extension as they do on the conventional expense heads of ordinary business. Governments also maintain complex systems to help agrarian communities use pesticides correctly. The dimensions of service required are staggering. That is why abuse still takes place. However, famine due to pests may have become a thing of the past in this Millennium.

New Pesticide Regulation for Safety and the Environment

There can be no lasting freedom without regulation. Anything we do to survive may harm another. Biodynamic farming has its virtues. Will it feed, clothe, and power the world? Regulation is the only way for all people to live in harmony.

Regulation which is not prospective will be deemed harsh and unjust. This is why rules and conditions should be evolutionary. Expectations are Malthusian. Therefore, regulations should also adapt to new times. How can this be relevant for pesticides and their regulation?

1. Since the NOEL is known for each pesticide, the focus of regulation should shift to making it feasible to avoid this level of exposure.

2. Step one above should be peripheral rather than central when it comes to execution.

3. Electronics, satellites, and the Internet should be leveraged fully to promote safe and judicious use.

4. Beneficial insects, especially egg parasites, should be nurtured and treasured.

5. Agrarian communities need local self-government structures to ensure food safety, and wellness amongst people who handle pesticides. Women in villages are invaluable and omnipotent resources in this respect.

May July 2008 witness the dawn of a new era in pesticide regulation for secular benefits. Please participate.

Endosulfan Aerial Spraying Benefits

Decades have past since I last participated in Endosulfan aerial spraying. That has not diminished my impressions of the secular benefits for farmers, their families, and village communities.

Aerial spraying is integral to Precision Agriculture for small farmers. Ground operations work in the expansive land holdings of Australia, North America, parts of Brazil, and Europe. However, preventive control of a brood is best achieved through an aerial campaign.

Aerial spraying saves precious water resources. Low-volume ground operations take one thousand liters of water for each acre per spray. Can we afford this?

Aerial spraying in still air conditions reduces hazards of drift. It is feasible to protect people, natural resources, and animals from exposure during aerial spraying operations.

Aerial spraying has got much better than in my days. I did not have radio controlled helicopters or GPS.

However, Endosulfan is still a top choice for Precision Agriculture through aerial spraying.

Endosulfan is a single-window solution to common endemic pests and epidemic outbreaks of insects.

Endosulfan provides better duration of pest management per application.

Endosulfan is economical.

Natural resources and output exposed to Endosulfan are easy to clean.

Endogram only works with Endosulfan.

Support the resurrection of Endosulfan aerial spraying with radio-controlled and GPS-enabled mini-helicopters.

A Time for Endosulfan and Endogram

Everyone loves rain-bearing clouds after months of unrelenting summer. That includes the top-shoot borer, leaf-eating caterpillars, and aphids. A brief and dry interlude could bring on thrips, while fertilizer top dressing after irrigation creates just the right climate near the bases of plants for thirsty jassids.

Trichogramma, beetles, and chrysopa love to feed on these pests and their eggs. However, there can be times when scouts find that pest populations are ascendant. IPM and ICM technologies prescribe chemical pesticides.

Monocotyledons and crop varieties with highest potentials for first flushes are especially susceptible during the first 60 days of the monsoon season. Farmers have to take risky investment decisions during these weeks. They cannot stand and watch their livelihoods eaten away. Most of them have no insurance. Expensive chemicals may save the crop but ruin them anyway. Economy is paramount in pesticide choices for farmers.

It is time for the duo of Endogram and Endosulfan.

May God grant bounteous harvests to farmers.

Stewardship for Illegal Pesticide Residues in Food and Water

Abuse can hurt. Influential sections of society expect business houses to play regulatory roles. You may be held responsible even if an entity on which you have no control disregards a label prescription.

See:

http://blog.greens.org.nz/2008/06/23/usda-suspends-pesticide-reporting-to-benefit-monsanto/

The pesticide industry has traditionally focused on scientific testing, quality manufacture, and extension efforts.

Is it time to extend the range and scope of business stewardship?

Computers and satellites make it possible to track safe and judicious pesticide use better than in the past.

Business integration is another initiative that can protect consumers effectively from abusive residues.

Endogram protection near harvest is another productive route to correct deployment of pest management agents.

Do you have better ideas? Please post below or email sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Everyone wins if pesticide abuse is eliminated.

Pesticide Apartheid

It is a crime to be black.

Blackening a face reduces the stature of any entity.

These are gifts for the world from the continent of Europe.

The superiority of white over black has driven all major moves of Europe, from crusades to colonization.

Such fractious thinking is behind the content at the following link:

http://www.greenpeace.org/eu-unit/press-centre/reports/dirty-portfolios-of-pesticides-companies


Truthfully, there is no place for apartheid in the business of pesticides.

Every sovereign country must decide which pesticides are best to ensure its food security. National regulation is sacrosanct in a global business world.

Pesticides can be used safely and judiciously. Instances of their abuse have no bearing on manufacturers or on the molecules.

Please make your voice heard. Posts below and emails to sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com are welcome.

Your color is no bar at this web page.

How Should Pesticide Toxicology Be Reviewed?

Who should study pesticide toxicology? How should it be done?

The system that has been used for decades is that regulators decide on protocols and standards. Only a small fraction of the molecules that are synthesized make it to market.

Perhaps someone has an idea for a better system. It is best that regulators consider and apply it prospectively.

Haphazard testing wastes resources, especially if test conditions do not mimic real life conditions. It assassinates brands without justification.

Would you use an aircraft simulator to find out if a submarine is ocean-worthy?

What does the research published at the link below achieve?


http://en.scientificcommons.org/17484524

Why Endosulfan Stops Dreaded Armies in Their Tracks

Bhadrak is also God's own country. Rice paddies stretch all the way from Kolkata in the North to Chennai in the South. The Eastern seaboard of India has launched the most pioneering expeditions of India, from sea faring journeys of our ancestors to the rocket and missile tests of India today. Bhadrak is only a portion of this continuum, but it is a jewel in the verdant crown of the Protector of Earth and his sacred kith nevertheless.

The mid-1970s were glorious years to be responsible for pesticide business in Orissa. Droughts had taken a welcome break, and the terrible cyclone of the century was still beyond the horizon. Korean and indigenous steel lords had not arrived. These were Camelot years for Indian agriculture.

I was fortunate to have a demonstration plot near the rail tracks. The Puri Express is often on time as it passes Bhadrak. Engine drivers seemed to know that light traps must be switched on at the same time every night. I could temper the flow of kerosene so that the lamp lasted for no more or less than 2 hours. My farmer associate could switch on the light without my help. I was able to relax in the cool night breeze of the town lodge with air horns of buses and bold cockroaches for company.

My heart skipped a beat. The normally placid Jagadish could hardly wait for me to un-bolt the door.

“’Sheesh Katta Layda Poka is here Boss”.

It was action stations for me right away. Have you seen war movies with pilots scrambling to fighter planes? Only then will you be able to imagine the rapid action force of rural India. Hordes of people assembled in the darkness. Sprayers, pesticide, lamps, and water, were in place. We started before dawn. I had my own security. It was a man with a pitchfork and a blade. He was to keep snakes away from me, and help me bleed if I was bitten.

It took a fortnight to drive the Spodoptera away. It was really like fighting an invading army. Every molt made the caterpillars more thick-skinned, and their hairs like spears. However, the young ones were the most voracious. We lost acres before the brood was vanquished. The farmers were grateful, for they would have slept through the decisive stages of the invasion were it not for my light trap.

Cotton is not a major crop in Bhadrak, but it grew on a government farm. I dropped in to see what the Army Worm had made of the dicot. The field was spic and span. I must say that the organic cotton had not arrived in 1978. This field was managed by IPM and ICM.

The farm manager was not very well disposed towards me. He probably thought that my light trap fame was exaggerated. However, he was a government officer, so it was my duty to try and placate him. I heaped praise on his pest management expertise, but got only a laconic reply when I asked for his spray schedule.

“Endocel”.

Protection for a Pesticide Hoax

The Internet can be a tricky place. You can post scurrilous material, while restricting facilities for the web community to respond.

Take a look at the ridiculous post below, to which only customers can respond:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/blog/post/PLNK2N5XPGKHGOOYO?ie=UTF8&cdERR=noPurchase#CustomerDiscussionsPost

Endosulfan is a vital aid for the protection of crops.

Endosulfan is the only pesticide with a strain of a tolerant egg parasite.

Endosulfan can be used on cotton without any hazardous residues on sheets made with this fiber.

There are other facts from which the web site linked above diverts.

Anyone can post below, or send email to sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Your views will be honored, and there is nothing you have to buy first.

Image Pollution of Endosulfan

There are still some people who find justification for physical discrimination against demographic segments of society. Women of all ages are favorite targets of fascists, enforcing dress, behavior, and other restrictions on hapless individuals.

Discrimination can take a variety of forms, some of which are subtle. Persistence in heaping blame brainwashes people in to wondering whether there could be some truth in lies.

Stewardship cannot take this lying down. Pesticides are sophisticated weapons of crop care. They must be used as prescribed. Abuse does not reflect adversely on the abused.

Every scurrilous attempt to malign Endosulfan deserves a response. Please visit the following link and post your views:

http://developedment.blogspot.com/2008/06/kerala-as-we-know-is-called-gods-own.html

The Xerox of Pesticides

A copier made by any manufacturer may let you down. You will probably blame Xerox by name, whether the company deserves it or not.

The dominance of any one member of an entire product category has both advantages and downsides.

This is the story of Endosulfan.

It is the only pesticide many farmers know. That is why urban activists love to target it as well.

"I have to Endocel my crop today".

From Jullunder to Jalpaiguri, and from Bhavnagar to Bengalooru, farm families of all tongues, religions, and cultures swear by Endosulfan. It is also an important protector of the rice paddies and spices of Kerala, where it has been so abused and maligned as well.

The world is yet to see the best of Endosulfan. Endogram has potentials that even its owners do not appreciate. One day, all pest management will follow the integrated and sustainable route of Endocel and Endogram.

Satyameva Jayate

Why Pioneers Count on Endosulfan

My business management education did not prepare me for this.

The journey from Jaipur seemed to be in to Hell. Laloo Prasad was still a humble Bhoodan Sevak in a Bihar backwater in those days, so there were no Garib Raths on Indian tracks. I tossed and turned all night on the berth like a cockroach on a stove. Dawn in the Thar was worse than mid-day in what even the Shiv Sena then called Bombay.

The sand was everywhere. Even now after decades, I still do not look as old as I did in the railway mirror, with white hair and eyebrows. Bottled water was unknown, and I had metabolized every drop I carried even before we had passed the Jaipur outer signal.

Lord Hanuman came to my rescue. The settlement named after his effulgence was a green feast for my eyes. I wondered if by some miracle, the train had reached Israel! The rest of the journey to Ganganagar filled me with wonder, for I had never seen such crop intensity and diversity. It was also my first encounter with kinoos, and I have never stopped adoring this hybrid fruit.

The lodge was remarkably clean, but the neighboring Ganaganagar jail was a stern reminder that I was here on duty. I had been sent to check on a potential distributor. The latter turned out to be as shocking as my train and road experiences of the previous night.

Shri Nathuram Khursija is no more, but neither the command area of the Gang Canal nor I can forget him. He was extraordinarily agile for a person of his age and rotund form. However, it was his commercial acumen and pioneering spirit that made him a living legend.

Nathuramji was a pesticide professional par excellence. However, it is difficult to know what to make of his qualifications and background. His favorite script was Urdu, and he was an octroi inspector. How could such a person know so much about agronomy, aerial spraying, and the safe and judicious use of pesticides?

One day I found out.

Nathuramji had come to what we are now forced to call Mumbai. I had been promoted a couple of times, and lived in a posh company apartment. I decided to return his bottomless hospitality, and requested him to have dinner cooked by my wife. Though she comes from a community of very capable alcohol consumers, Usha was simply amazed at Patiala pegs in action. I was soon in another world , but Nathuramji 's hand was rock steady , round after round.

Perhaps this is why the answer to how Nathuramji became such a top pesticide professional has become so indelible in my mind.

"It is boring being an octroi inspector in Ganganagar. Very few trucks come compared to neighboring Punjab. I began to study the Lorry Receipts (LRs) to pass time. I found that most consignments were destined for 10Z. I knew that 10Z had the best cultivators, and that they were making big bucks from the newly irrigated land. Now, the 10Z landlords were ordering full cases from Bombay. So I thought that why not ask the Bombay party for a dealership? I found that the manufacturers were very capable industrialists, so I thought of looking for substitutes, and that is how I stumbled on your company".

Usha did not much about pesticides in those days. That is why she was prompted to ask:

"Which pesticide?"

The reply was clear though the bottle was nearly empty:

"Endocel. Can you introduce me to the owners?"

How to Manage Off-Target Endosulfan Residues

Drift and run-off result in pesticide residues appearing in areas that have never been sprayed. Here are two relevant links:

http://fighttherightwingnuts.blogspot.com/2008/05/your-5-minute-activist-links-for-may-5.html

http://www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/emon/pubs/tac/tacpdfs/endosulfan/endosulfan_fate.pdf

How can we manage Endosulfan residues in nature?

1. Safe and judicious use prescriptions should include measures to limit, to contain, and to degrade contaminated soil and water.

2. Formulations, application equipment, and ambient conditions should combine to delineate drift boundaries.

3. Endogram should be used in place of Endosulfan, whenever appropriate spray conditions do not exist.

4. Residue monitoring should be taken in to consideration only if tests are conducted by certified laboratories and technicians, with confirmatory samples drawn in statutory and statistical ways.

5. Off-target residues, the relevant NOEL, and the half-life should be put together as primary responses to valid findings of toxic residues.

6. pH, microbes, scrubbers, land-fills with impervious boundaries, and incineration, are alternatives for the management of contaminated water, soil, and even air, where accidental or unintentional drift or contamination occurs.

7. Laws regarding the disposal of pesticide containers need to be reviewed.

Please post your views on this subject below, or email:

sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Endosulfan When it Sizzles

Abstract

Endosulfan was first synthesized in a temperate country. However, it

has a natural fit with tropical and sub-tropical farm lands. Heat from the

sun and humidity from clouds are favorable for the rapid spread of pests

that Endosulfan and Endogram manage best in tandem. Some

precautions and contingent actions related to oral toxicity are universal,

but dermal and inhalation exposures deserves additional attention when

ambient temperatures stay above 35 degrees celsius even when it is dark.

Residue management, transport, and storage have to be necessarily

location specific, as do regulatory compliance measures for the

containment of contamination. Endosulfan can and must be used safely

and judiciously in all climates. It is a primary and strategic weapon

against devastating pestilence, and deserves professional stewardship.

Endosulfan for All Seasons

Endosulfan is a versatile and farmer-friendly pesticide. Its acute toxicology parameters are entirely within the skill sets of trained applicators. Endosulfan is the partner of choice for herbal extracts and bio-rational products. It is also a useful tool for resistance management spray regimens. Beneficial organisms, especially the egg parasite Trichogramma, are partial to Endosulfan. This pesticide finds favor with cultivators who have not studied entomology because it can manage populations of a wide variety of pests with varied feeding habits.

Endosulfan should not be used when it rains incessantly. It is an optimal choice in all other growing conditions. The loading, application, disposal, and storage precautions that are standards for all pesticide labels suffice as precautions for Endosulfan as well. Sprays during dusk and dawn not only produce better results, but are safer as well. Dyed water and sensitive papers should be used to gauge the extents of drift, should windy conditions prevail. All people and animals must be kept outside this drift zone. Long application booms are best for avoiding dermal toxicity for operators, who should be particular to adjust their field movements so as to respect re-entry periods stipulated by law.

Endosulfan and Endogram

Rainy spells favor insect incidences. A farmer cannot leave valuable crops exposed for days on end. Heavy soils may remain unsuitable for field operations for long periods after rains have ceased. Hence, a farmer should have access to a rearing facility for cutting-edge IPM technologies to work. Endogram is unique in this respect. It is the only egg parasite that a farmer can encourage even before the rains break. New cards can be attached near tender leaves even on rainy days. Endogram eggs can be placed out of the reach of rain drops, so that they hatch successfully. Endogram is a boon for farmers, and it makes Endosulfan a pesticide of universal choice.

Trichogrmma production and distribution do not have established commercial models. Indeed, the consensus amongst people who have tried such ventures in the past is that such projects drain cash. It is therefore important to learn from history and to make corrections in the implementation program. A first step should be to achieve a correct balance between centralization and decentralization. Maintaining and building on tolerances, as well as the supply of quality Corcyra eggs are suggested boundaries of centralization. Rearing, card preparation, and scouting should be at the periphery. Rural women can be organized in to cooperatives, and given corollary roles, to make Endogram a commercial success.

Why Farmers Depend on Endosulfan

Endosulfan is a favorite whipping boy for publicity-hungry and misguided activists. Ignorance is a primary weapon of such propagandists, who tout invalid accounts of deleterious effects, without any facts or accountability. Endosulfan is the scapegoat for negligence at various levels: it is as though one should blame bank notes for corruption! Much of this awful abuse is directed by patent holders who seek to replace Endosulfan with their extravagantly priced monopolies. Even original discoverers have no qualms about condemning their own former patented molecules, once they become generics. Emerging country regulators and urban dwellers are natural targets of such manipulations.

Countries which support Endosulfan lead world progress on the farm productivity front. Cotton is the most striking example, with impressive strides by India in this wonderful fiber. Multiple flushes and weather uncertainties make cotton a risky crop for farmers on the financial front. Cash flows from small plots of pulses and maize help cultivators meet essential agronomic requirements. Economy is the most important parameter for farmers to keep in mind. Excess spending during certain crop-cycle phases can lead to ruin. This is where Endosulfan comes to the rescue of cash-strapped farmers. No other product can match it for spectrum and duration in terms of financial outlays.

Universal Toxicity and Hazard Management

Farmers do not enjoy the influences of capitalists and the wealthy of urban areas. They must act as their own stewards. This includes preventing abuse of their essential farm inputs. An Endosulfan ban can wreck havoc with rural economics. What is worse is that it can make an economy dependent on expensive imports from Europe. Farmers are servers. They do not intend to contaminate the environment. Harming urban health is not the aim of any farmer. Farmers depend on extension agencies for information and new technologies. The Internet opens new possibilities in this regard. All stakeholders can agree that extension services should focus on safety and ecological conservation parameters, as they have done for productivity and agronomy in the past.

The extension needs of farmers vary by country, and even by region within nations such as China and India. Just as each growing area has its own University, agriculture department officials, and agronomic recommendations, so the safety practices should be prepared taking ground realities in to account. A common reason for European prescriptions in this regard being ill-conceived, is that their farm conditions are entirely different. Agriculture in Europe is mechanized and entirely subsidized. It is not sustainable in economic terms. That is why global safety standards need realistic interpretation when we fly out from the comfort of Europe in to the heartlands of the impoverished.

Additional Precautions and Contingent Actions

What can farmers do to support Endosulfan? One approach could be to create feasible ways of managing the risks and consequences of abuse. A first step that would make an enormous difference relates to the establishment of a cadre of professional pesticide operators. Physically fit adult males in normal states of health should be trained in loading, application, containment of contamination, as well as storage practices. They should also be capable of dealing with emergencies related to pesticide abuse. The cadre should be local, so that they can deal with language and cultural issues. However, they should have Internet and mobile access, so that they can be in daily and real-time contact with central experts and authorities. This cadre would have to work in close coordination with a co-operative of women responsible for Endogram and its related operations.

Individual farmers with small holdings cannot practice modern agronomy efficiently. The communist model of collective farming needs revival, albeit in a modified format. India's dairy co-operatives can show the way, since they have unprecedented track records of success. The co-operative template will provide small farmers with cutting-edge technologies, while retaining their personal rights at the same time. However, it does mean that individual spray operations should cease. Such a restriction cannot be imposed: it must emanate from within the village community. What external agencies can contribute is to establish demonstration models to serve as benchmarks if not ideals for farmers to consider. This is one of the advantages that contract farming and plantation models have. The entire continent of Africa, as well as conventional farming in Australia and the granaries of North America, have powerful examples of how systematic implementation of agronomy over large areas can produce sustainable productivity.

National and World Boundaries of Pesticide Stewardship

Europe is not content with minding its own agriculture. The continent leaves no stone unturned to further its patent interests. Vigilance is the eternal price of freedom. Regulators in emerging countries have to balance toxicology and physical chemistry resources with the imperative to protect the interests of their farmers and economies. There are registration requirements in individual countries that are simply wasteful. It is not necessary to repeat tests on defenseless laboratory animals, or even to repeat analytical and metabolism studies. The harmonization of registration will release substantial resources in cash-strapped countries, which should be recycled in to extension initiatives. Most of the regulatory bureaucrats in third-world countries should move away from desks, offices, meetings, and files, and work in fields with farmers instead.

The NOEL, molecule specifications, metabolic studies, and analytical methods are four areas in which the whole world can comfortably follow the lead of Europe. There are no significant advantages in duplicating the resources that Europe has sunk in to generating such factual information. However, the ADI, label claims, MRL, re-entry period, and handling prescriptions should be national, with provisions for regional modifications. Strategic pesticides such as Endosulfan should enjoy special stewardship support, so that internationally-motivated pressures for bans are addressed effectively.

Conclusions

Endosulfan is suitable for use in the tropics. Rains, rather than sunshine or temperature, are the real limitations of use. That is why Endogram is a vital partner for Endosulfan. Endosulfan and Endogram make a team that no poor farmer should be denied. The balance between European and national interests vitiate the current pesticide regulation structure. Farmers can benefit by the decentralization of all extension applications of capital-intensive toxicology procedures. A local application cadre, working in tandem with Endogram production, in real-time contact with central knowledge resources, can produce sustainable productivity benefits, and meet all legitimate stakeholder aspirations.

Recommended Reading

Howard, P, 1991, Handbook of Environmental Fate and Exposure Data for Organic Chemicals, CRC Press

Lauwerys, R, and Hoet, P, 2001, Industrial Chemical Exposure, CRC Press

Ramamoorthy, S, 1997, Chlorinated Organic Compounds in the Environment, CRC Press

Roberts, T, Hutson, D, and Jewess, P, 1998, Metabolic Pathways of Agrochemicals, Royal Society of Chemistry

Wyatt, T, and Chiri, A, 2007, Benefits of Endosulfan in Agricultural Production, retrieved June 2008 from: http://www.panna.org/files/EPA-HQ-OPP-2002-0262-0062.pdf

Endosulfan, 1984, International Program on Chemical Safety, retrieved June 2008 from: http://www.inchem.org/documents/ehc/ehc/ehc40.htm#SectionNumber:9.3

Endosulfan, 2001, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, retrieved June 2008 from: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts41.html

Endosulfan Abuse

It could be the highly seasonal nature of the business, or perhaps a rapid rise in demand, but the pesticide industry needs to do more to prevent abuse of its product category.

Investments in generating safety data cannot provide sustainable returns if label instructions are not followed.

The distribution chain can add value by providing professional and skilled application services.

The spread of the Internet makes it easier than before for extension authorities at central locations to guide farmers in this respect, wherever they may be. It is significant that the World Wide Web accommodates multi-media data exchange, and a growing number of scripts as well.

Here is a link to the situation in parts of Nigeria:

http://www.leadershipnigeria.com/product_info.php?products_id=29484&osCsid=d466f3ec7ca544a7c064ed57b1aec7f8

A Tribute to My First Endosulfan Guru

A slim and aging frame belied an iron will and sinews of steel.

The late Shri Ratanlal Ji Goenka was an agricultural technologist par excellence. He graduated from Pune when it was the only city in newly independent India with an agricultural college. The inheritor of a vast industrial empire, he also had business acumen in his genes. His mother created history by refusing to disembark from a first class railway compartment barred by European rulers for Indian subjects.

Ratanlal Ji was my first distributor. I was fresh from the elegant portals of the IIM in Ahmedabad, but the difference between our generations made me quickly his disciple rather than a representative of a principal.

It was a strange learning experience. My company brief was to promote a brand of Endrin with a proprietary systemic pesticide. Ratanlal Ji made me trudge through fields for days on end, only to ask farmers to spray Endosulfan. Yawatmal and Akola were our focus districts, because the most cotton, and the lands of a Maharashtra Chief Minister, were in these neighboring parts of Vidharbha.

I should clarify that the year was 1972. Vidharbha was a leading agricultural zone of the world. There were no farmer suicides. Genetically manipulated cotton was unknown. Ratanlal Ji used to say

" Even dogs cannot finish the grain of Vidharbha if it rains just once".

The farmers were content. The soil was glorious. The Maharashtra Apex Marketing Federation was a dynamic body dedicated to the cause of farmers.

I could not understand why Ratanlal Ji kept recommending Endosulfan, when I had something else to sell. Ratanlal Ji also represented Shell apart from my employers, so he too had no gain from Endosulfan promotion and use.

Pesticide consumption in Vidharbha was as seasonal then as it is now. You had to look for business elsewhere after Deepavali. Cold nights drive pests away. Besides, indigenous cotton yields on first flush. The point is that Vidharbha pesticide sales people can work in the area from March to October only.

I found out that Ratanlal Ji did indeed recommend Endrin, but he always started all spray schedules with Endosulfan. He also prescribed it whenever a farmer complained that over-lapping generations and simultaneous attacks made pest management difficult.

We became friends. I gathered the courage to challenge his spray choices and pesticide scheduling. Ratanlal Ji responded:

"I will show you three answers tomorrow".

I was intrigued. I got up earlier than usual (we often slept in his Jeep when government rest houses were full). We were in the first field of the day, as was his wont, just before dawn.

He kept his word. The decades have not dimmed my vivid images of the three differences between Endosulfan fields and others:

Trichogramma

Lady Bird Beetles

Chrysopa

Why Endosulfan Is The Most Abused Pesticide

Stewardship has both technical and political dimensions.

There are hundreds of pesticide molecules in the world of pest management.

Patented molecules from Europe are never banned.

Generic pesticides made in India are specific targets for bans.

European manufacturers take leads in getting their own legacy molecules banned once patents expire.

This has stereo benefits.

It hits revenues of generic producers.

Secondly, banned generic pesticides are replaced by new patents.

No prizes for guessing whether the new patents cost farmers more or less than banned generics.

However, a puzzle remains.

How do patent holders manipulate regulation with such ease?

Each country has its own explanation.

Each individual must look at the facts dispassionately.

This is tough because so much of pesticide ban movements stays underground.

That is why the following two links, and others like them, are so valuable:


http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/2008/06/09/daily3.html

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/06/09/ap5094930.html

Thank you for posting your views below. You can also email

sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Women and Endosulfan

Endogram binds women and Endosulfan in a web of mutual benefits.

Women have always favored microbiology. Their insect-rearing skills however, remain largely unused.

Women represent an enormous resource in all agrarian communities. They can take leads in the revolution towards Precision Agriculture.

Endogram is a unique gift from India to the universe of rural women. It is an opportunity with unprecedented technological and social development potentials.

Endogram vaults Endosulfan to a special place in the world of all pesticides. Even countries that have fallen prey to audacious attempts to ban this enabling molecule, can retrace their steps through the vehicle of Endogram.


Please support Endogram in world quests for sustainable food and energy securities.

A Fungal Answer for Endosulfan Baiters

Contamination of soil and water are major bones of contention between users and antagonists of Endosulfan.

Microbes can come to our rescue and provide routes to answers.

Here are two links to a report of a fungus that can help with the rapid metabolism of Endosulfan residues:


http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/klu/bile/2001/00000023/00000002/00320318

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=167824

It is also possible to use the magical Endogram success story, and develop microbes that thrive in Endosulfan-rich environments. This can act in situations where alkalinity cannot be used for degradation of natural resources with Endosulfan residues above safety limits. Take a look at:

http://jeq.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/32/1/47

The microbe world is so vast and diverse that there is no end to finding new solutions to pesticide residues. Here is a link to a case of a pathogen being put to good use:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VG6-4MFTVHJ-1&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=62ce2517e14c2caa6eee5f723271b3b1


So let us stop petty arguments about Endosulfan persistence, and get down to the real work of its safe and judicious use instead.

What do you think?

Please post your opinion below or email sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Resistance Management with Endosulfan

Resistance management distinguishes pest control professionals from others.

Paying customers want efficacy, regulators insist on valid data, while activists clamor for safety. A pest control expert must balance all these concerns on the fulcrum of resistance.

Insects, mites, rodents, and microbes have been around for longer than people. Relatively short life spans give them powerful adaptability. Surviving members of a brood or a colony are dynamic in developing tolerances for every weapon that we may deploy to survive their onslaughts.

Endosulfan is a versatile tool to manage pest resistance. Here are some of its endearing properties for every pest management authority:

1. It prevents incidental and minor pests from taking the places of dominant ones.

2. It is able to maintain LC90 levels on plant surfaces beyond the extended hatching periods of broods with compressed life cycles.

3. It is compatible with herbal repellants and with bio-rational products.

4. It is the only registered pesticide with a tolerant egg parasite strain,

5. Tolerance is rapidly eroded in commonly recommended spray schedules.

Have you any field experiences with pest resistance? Please post below or write to sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Do also respond to the author of the following web page:

http://www.nature.com/hdy/journal/v81/n1/full/6883650a.html

Web Based Pesticide Services

The Internet has enormous potential to promote safe and judicious use of pesticides.

Precision Agriculture stands to benefit in equal measure.

There are two primary benefits of Agricultural Extension through the World Wide Web.

One is to provide real-time information to farmers.

The other is to follow Zero Based Budgeting for marketing and extension teams.

Here is a link to an attempt to use the Internet for the dissemination of facts that farmers can use:

http://www.esagu.in/esagu/esagu2004/index.php?mode=browse_advice&browse_by=date&date=2004-08-23&page=7


The Internet is a key resource for farmers in the UK and the U.S. However, poor farmers from the third world and from emerging countries, stand to benefit in equal measures.

The World Wide Web levels the playing field for impoverished farmers.

The Internet supports multi-media inputs, as well as text from a growing number of languages.

Please post your views below, or write to

sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Let us promote the safe and judicious use of pesticides through the World Wide Web.

The Parasite Power of Endosulfan

Egg parasites are like the myriad freedom fighters who won freedom for modern India. They remain out of public sight, but they have rendered yeoman services since times immemorial.

Trichogramma is the most versatile and utilitarian of egg parasites in a sub-tropical context. It favors all lepidopterous eggs, and is a fierce predator of pests. Cotton, tomatoes, rice, and sugarcane are some of the important crops that Trichogramma can protect.

Trichogramma is easy to rear. It provides pleasant and profitable livelihoods for agrarian women. Even women of child-bearing age can work with Trichogramma without fears of mutagenic or carcinogenic effects.

Trichogramma keeps up its work in rain and shine. It is therefore able to fill in for pesticides when incessant rains, strong winds, hot sun, or the darkness of night keep spray operators away.

Trichogramma is a central element of IPM. It is a vital component of economical pest management for impoverished farmers.

Trichogramma and Endosulfan are natural partners. Both stand for sustainable IPM in the greater interests of farmers.

This is the truth of Endogram.

Post below or send email to sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

to access Endogram

Start a new Pest Management affair this season with Endogram.

Victims of Pesticide Abuse

Dedication to the truth is an axiom of conventional Marxism. Objectivity is a key driver to substitute spiritual faith with ideology. However, such unwavering commitment is no certain guard against dromology. Please consider the following link:

http://pd.cpim.org/2008/0601_pd/06012008_13.htm

The pejorative reference to Endosulfan is incidental for the casual reader, but offensive for those concerned with pest management.

Such examples abound. Abuse and negligence are equal conventions in the packed agendas of modern life. Propagandists have field days spewing bombs of disinformation about pesticides. There is also blame-shifting with abandon in the process.

The tragedy of aerial spraying on wild cashew trees in parts of Kerala are burdened on Endosulfan. The latter is inanimate and unable to protest its innocence. That cannot change the following truths:

1. Endosulfan can and should be used safely and judiciously.

2. Endosulfan is a priority resource for use with skill, experience, and diligence.

3. Abuses of Endosulfan should not reflect on the merits and essential utilities of the substance.

4. Lies will be perceived as truth if stewardship is neglected.

5. Endosulfan is crucial to food security and to agrarian progress.

Please contribute your views and opinions on this matter. You can post below or email

sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com

Thank you for alerting your colleagues about this forum. It is updated everyday. We accommodate inputs in all languages and multi-media as well.