Govt. seeks feedback on draft Bill to regulate pesticides, promote ‘safe and effective’ use

1. At a Glance

• The Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 is a draft legislation by the Union Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare to replace the archaic Insecticides Act, 1968 and Insecticides Rules, 1971. [1]
• It regulates the full lifecycle of pesticides — manufacture, import, packaging, labelling, storage, advertisement, sale, transport, distribution, use, and disposal. [4]
• The Bill promotes biological pesticides and those based on traditional knowledge, marking a shift from purely chemical regulation. [2][4]
• Directly relevant for GS-III (Agriculture) and GS-II (Government policy & legislation) in the UPSC Mains exam.

2. Why in the News

• January 2026: The Union Agriculture Ministry released the draft Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 for public comments, with the deadline set as 4 February 2026. [1]
• The move was widely covered as a long-overdue overhaul — the current Insecticides Act, 1968 is over 55 years old and fails to address modern challenges such as bio-pesticides, digital traceability, and global food-safety standards. [1][3]

3. Background & Evolution

• 1968: Insecticides Act, 1968 enacted — the foundational law governing pesticide registration and use in India.
• 1971: Insecticides Rules, 1971 framed under the 1968 Act.
• 2008: First major attempt to replace the 1968 Act — Pesticide Management Bill, 2008 introduced but not enacted. [3]
• 2017: Draft Pesticide Management Bill, 2017 circulated for stakeholder feedback but not introduced in Parliament. [3]
• 2020: A revised Pesticide Management Bill, 2020 prepared; lapsed without enactment. [2]
• January 2026: Fresh Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 drafted and circulated for public comments; incorporates lessons from all previous iterations. [1]

Key Driver: India is one of the world's largest pesticide consumers and exporters. Rising concerns over pesticide residues in food, farmer safety, groundwater contamination, and non-compliance with international Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) have made legislative reform urgent.

4. Core Static Facts

Definition of "Pesticide" under draft Bill [4]:

• Any substance/mixture of chemical or biological origin intended to prevent, destroy, attract, repel, mitigate or control any pest.
• Includes: plant growth regulators, defoliants, desiccants, fruit-thinning agents, sprouting inhibitors.
• Includes substances applied to crops before or after harvest to protect them during storage and transport.

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

Economic

• India's pesticide industry is significant for exports; legislative gaps cause non-acceptance of Indian agri-produce in international markets due to MRL violations. [2]
• Stricter regulation of spurious pesticides through higher penalties expected to reduce economic loss to farmers from ineffective products. [1]
• Digital traceability and a national register will streamline licensing, reduce compliance costs, and curb black-market pesticide trade.

Social

• The Bill mandates hospital protocols for pesticide poisoning — an acute public health concern, particularly for rural farming communities. [2]
• Farmer-centric design: transparency provisions aim to reduce information asymmetry between pesticide companies and small/marginal farmers.
• Women and tribal farmers disproportionately exposed to unsafe pesticides — safer regulation has equity implications.

Environmental

• Promotion of biological pesticides and traditional knowledge-based formulations directly reduces chemical load on soil, water, and non-target organisms. [4]
• Bill explicitly aims to minimise risk to "living organisms other than pests" and the environment. [4]
• Monitoring of pesticide residues in food and environmentally sound disposal of pesticide packages mandated. [2]
• Aligns with FAO's International Code of Conduct on Pesticide Management (voluntary international standard). [5]

Legal / Constitutional

• Replaces a 55+ year-old legislation (Insecticides Act, 1968) — brings India's regulatory framework in line with modern science and WTO/Codex Alimentarius standards.
• Agriculture is a State subject (List II, Schedule VII of the Constitution), but manufacture and regulation of industries falls on the Concurrent List — giving Parliament jurisdiction over pesticide regulation.
• Licence revocation upon criminal conviction adds a significant deterrent mechanism.

Scientific / Technological

• Introduction of a Registration Committee to review safety and effectiveness of already-registered pesticides and cancel registrations where warranted — a risk-based review mechanism new to Indian law. [1]
• National digital register enables end-to-end traceability from manufacturer to farmer — supports data-driven MRL monitoring.
• Recognition of biological and traditional knowledge-based pesticides integrates modern bioscience and indigenous knowledge.

Administrative

• Central Pesticides Board will advise Centre and States on: Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) criteria, pesticide recall procedures, disposal standards, testing laboratory standards, and advertisement standards. [2]
• Dual federal challenge: Centre regulates registration; States handle licensing and enforcement — coordination mechanism under the Board is critical.
• Digital licensing expected to address bottlenecks caused by paper-based, state-level approvals.

6. Recent Developments (last 12–18 months)

• January 2026: Draft Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 released by DA&FW for public/stakeholder comments. [1]
• Deadline for comments: 4 February 2026. [1]
• January 2026 (PRS Policy Review): The Bill highlighted as a key agricultural legislative reform in India's January 2026 policy cycle. [3]
• Prior attempt — Pesticide Management Bill, 2020 — had lapsed without passage, making 2025 draft the fourth iteration since 2008. [2][3]

7. Prelims Hooks

1. The Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 seeks to replace the Insecticides Act, 1968 — not the Insecticides Act of 1972 or 1980. [1]
2. Public comments on the draft Bill were invited by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare with deadline 4 February 2026. [1]
3. The draft Bill proposes a Registration Committee to maintain a National Digital Register of pesticides. [1]
4. The Central Pesticides Board under the draft Bill is an advisory body to both Central and State governments. [2]
5. Definition of "pesticide" in the draft Bill includes defoliants, desiccants, fruit-thinning agents, and sprouting inhibitors. [4]
6. The Bill explicitly promotes pesticides that are "biological and based on traditional knowledge." [4]
7. Bio-pesticide usage in India grew from 123 MT (1994–95) to 8,110 MT (2011–12). [2]
8. Chemical pesticide use declined by approximately one-third from 75,033 MT (1990–91) to 50,583 MT (2011–12). [2]
9. Conviction of an offence under the Bill leads to automatic revocation of licence. [1]
10. The Central Pesticides Board will frame model hospital protocols for handling pesticide poisoning cases. [2]
11. The Bill covers pesticides applied to crops both before and after harvest (post-harvest chemical coverage is an expansion over existing law). [4]
12. Earlier versions of this legislation: 2008 → 2017 → 2020 → 2025 — none prior to 2025 were enacted. [2][3]
13. The Bill mandates monitoring of pesticide residues in food — a function assigned to the Central Pesticides Board. [2]
14. FAO's International Code of Conduct on Pesticide Management is the key international voluntary framework this Bill aligns with. [5]

8. Mains Relevance

GS Papers: GS-II (Government policies, legislation, regulatory bodies) and GS-III (Agriculture, food security, environment).

Syllabus headings:

• GS-II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
• GS-III: Major crops, cropping patterns; issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies; food processing and related industries; land reforms.

Plausible Mains Question Stems:

1. "The Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 is a long-overdue legislative reform. Critically examine its key provisions and evaluate the challenges in its effective implementation given India's federal structure."
2. "Discuss the environmental and public health implications of pesticide overuse in India. How does the draft Pesticides Management Bill, 2025 attempt to address these concerns?"
3. "Promotion of biological pesticides in India — assess the progress made, challenges faced, and how the proposed regulatory framework can incentivise their wider adoption."

9. Related Topics to Study Next

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

1. Wrong year for parent Act: The law being replaced is the Insecticides Act, 1968, not "Pesticides Act, 1968" or "Insecticides Act, 1972." The word "Insecticides" (not "Pesticides") in the old Act title is a common MCQ trap.
2. Confusing Central Pesticides Board with Registration Committee: The Board is advisory; the Registration Committee handles actual registration, review, and cancellation of pesticides — two separate bodies proposed in the Bill.
3. Wrong ministry: This is under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, not the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers (which oversees the broader chemical industry) or MoEFCC.
4. Earlier Bills not enacted: Aspirants confuse one of the earlier draft Bills (2008, 2017, 2020) with an enacted law — none were passed; the Insecticides Act, 1968 remains in force as of the date of this note.
5. Scope of "pesticide" definition: The new definition is broader than the old Act — it explicitly covers post-harvest crop protection substances and traditional knowledge-based formulations; the old Act covered mainly chemical insecticides.