SAHIWAL, Nov 12: The Punjab government is establishing two laboratories to analyse spurious pesticides in the open market. The laboratories will be set up in Sahiwal and Dera Ghazi Khan.

This was stated by Col Shuja Khanzada, chairman of the Chief Minister’s Taskforce on Pesticides, at a meeting at the DCO office on Wednesday.

He said there was also a plan to set up pesticide courts to bring fake pesticide dealers to the book. He regretted that spurious pesticides had flooded the market much to the detriment of farmers.

The district agriculture setup had limited access to the existing laboratories where such spurious samples could be tested immediately, he said. In the last few months, he said, a total of 145 cases had been registered against pesticide dealers caught selling spurious or adulterated pesticides. “We cancelled the licences of the 145 dealers,” he added.

Col Shuja said there are many lacunae in the Pesticides Ordinance (amended) of 1973. “The ordinance doesn’t define proper legal mechanism or prescribe strict action against culprits, nor does it empower magistrates to work as pesticides inspectors to counter fake production”.

Quoting an example, he said, the authorities arrested a dealer for selling spurious pesticides but he got away with punishment by paying a meager fine. The Punjab government, he said, had decided to make certain amendments to the ordinance.

At the same time the government was committed to providing genuine pesticides to farmers, he added.