Endosulfan could be used for the next two years in India

An Indian expert committee told the Supreme Court that use of pesticide endosulfan may be allowed for next two years only to exhaust the existing stock and the raw material used for its production.

Supreme Court had last year banned the manufacture and sale of endosulfan in the country, pending a report from the government-constituted committee to review the safety of the product.

"The Ministry of Agriculture informed that in India, if no further import of raw material is allowed, the existing stock should be depleted within a period of two years after its manufacture.

"Taking into consideration all these facts, the Committee felt that that to exhaust the available stocks of the raw material, manufacture and use of endosulfan may be permitted for a total period of two years,” the report, filed before a bench of justices Swatanter Kumar and Madan B Lokur, said.

The recommendations of the expert committee, headed by Indian Council of Medical Research scientist R S Dhaliwal, would now be considered by the court on 29 November.

The panel, in its report, said, "The manufacturing and marketing companies should be asked to ensure to completely exhaust the available raw material during this period and ensure that that this pesticide is fully utilized in accordance with label claim and good agricultural practices for pest control."

The court-appointed committee observed that endosulfan has "important health hazards/biological effects related to endocrine disruption, carcinogenicity, congenital anomalies and reproductive and neurological abnormalities'.

The report also said that other pesticides "by nature, are toxic compound” having certain "unwanted effects". The court is hearing a petition filed by Democratic Youth Federation of India that sought a ban on endosulfan on the ground that it was causing health hazards including genetic disorders.