JAMMU — Senior CPI(M) leader and Kulgam MLA M Y Tarigami on Tuesday raised concerns over the excessive use of chemical pesticides and fertilisers, warning that indiscriminate application could harm the environment and pose serious risks to public health in Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking during a discussion on departmental allocations in the Assembly, Tarigami stressed the importance of soil testing and called for further research and judicious use of agricultural inputs such as fertilisers and pesticides.
He said prolonged and unregulated use of chemicals was already showing adverse effects, noting that excessive fertiliser use impacts air quality while pesticides beyond permissible limits enter the food chain and threaten human health.
Referring to research by scholars at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Tarigami said unnecessary or excessive application of pesticides could contaminate agricultural produce and may lead to serious health disorders, including cancer. He urged the government to seek expert opinion and enhance coordination between the health department, medical institutions and agricultural scientists to study the impact on human and environmental health.
The CPI(M) leader also spoke on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), describing it as a globally recognised scheme for providing livelihood support to rural households, while expressing concern over what he termed its dilution.
He said the scheme was earlier applicable across the country with wages fully borne by the Centre, but claimed that the guarantee was no longer universal, citing provisions that allow the government to determine implementation areas.
Highlighting the importance of grassroots democracy, Tarigami underlined the need for strengthening local self-governance and urged the government to announce panchayat and local body elections at the earliest.
“The people who elect us should also have the right to decide matters related to their streets, neighbourhoods and villages,” he said, adding that democratic decentralisation was as vital as the functioning of Parliament or state assemblies.
He also expressed hope that involving the Election Commission in the process would lead to early polls and help strengthen Panchayati Raj institutions in Jammu and Kashmir. — (PTI)