Demand for permanent ban on endosulfan

Members of the civil society including government officials, consumer activists and NGOs here today called for a permanent ban on the use of the endosulfan pesticide.

At a press meet convened by city-based NGO 'Mitramaadhyama', the group while lauding the Karnataka government's decision to ban the pesticide for 60 days, asked it to impose a permanent ban.

They appealed to the Centre to impose a country-wide ban on endosulfan and asked the state to lead a delegation to Delhi to pressurise the Union government in this regard.

The group urged other states to emulate the example of Karnataka and Kerala where the pesticide has already been banned.

The Karnataka government should form a committee, comprising social workers and experts, to conduct a thorough census of victims of endosulfan in various districts of the state and document its findings and set up a special cell to provide permanent rehabilitation to the victims, it said.

The government should also come out with a policy, making polluters pay for the pollution and its effects, the members said.

The group included Ravindranath Shanbhag, consumer activist, Mohammad Asheel, Assistant Nodal Officer, endosulfan Rehabilitation Programme, Kerala, C Jayakumar, Trustee, THANAL (NGO), Kerala, A S Ananda, Chairman Organic Farming Mission, Karnataka and Shree Padre, journalist.