Mohammad Ashraf, a long white-bearded man in his sixties, sitting cross-legged on a green patch in a fully blooming apple orchard, in Shopian district of South Kashmir, feels nostalgic as he recalls the days of his childhood.
“My siblings and I used to visit our ancestral orchard with our parents. We would take a stick, put an earthworm on it, and scare each other by pretending it would bite us. Sometimes, the intensity of our pranks crossed the limits, and our parents would scold us,” he recalls.
Now, those earthworms are on the verge of extinction-you rarely come across even a few.
“In the 70s, during my childhood, there was minimal use of pesticides and fertilizers, yet our orchard bore fruit. In recent times, however, there has been a surge in their use, which is obviously alarming,” says Ashraf softly, a hint of regret in his voice.
Another farmer, Mohammad Ismail, a septuagenarian, plucks thorny and foul-smelling plant material from his orchard with a small knife shaped tool. He mostly supervises the work of his sons in the apple orchard. “These days harmful and undesirable substances have made their way into our orchards,” Ismail says, pointing to sting nettle, commonly known as 'soi' in Kashmir.
He reveals that many varieties of flora once common in his youth are no longer seen in the orchard. “When I was the age of my children,” he recalls, “We used to bring home many medicinal plants that grew in our orchard. Later, we would use them to cure various seasonal diseases”.
When asked about the reasons behind this, Ismail is quick to respond, “We ourselves are responsible for this disaster. We crossed the limits. We should not have used pesticides excessively. Greed consumed us.”
Now Ismail emphasizes to his children the importance of the judicious use of pesticides and fertilizers. He urges them to use cow dung instead of chemical fertilizers.
A heap of cow dung can be seen unloaded recently by a tractor in Ismail’s orchard.
The agriculture and horticulture industries are vital to Kashmir's economy, with horticulture—particularly apple production—being a major source of livelihood and contributing significantly to the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).
Over the last 30 years, the widespread use of pesticides, fertilizers, insecticides and fungicides aimed at enhancing crop and fruit production has had multifaceted impacts and poses serious threat to biodiversity, environmental ecosystem, human health, water quality, and food safety.
Flora and fauna are very integral components of our natural world, each playing a unique role in maintaining biodiversity and ecological balance.
Loss of Biodiversity
Earthworms are usually the most abundant soil insects in agriculture soils. They are known to improve physical, chemical and biological properties of soil. In the 19th century, earthworms were considered a soil pest. However, heavy machinery, intensive tillage and widespread use of pesticides have, in many places eliminated or drastically reduced earthworm population.
While speaking with the Kashmir Times, Khurshid Ahmad, Assistant Professor-cum-Junior Scientist in the Department of Entomology at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST) Kashmir, says:
“Only about one percent of pests are harmful to our crops, other insects maintain the balance by controlling these pests. However, with the indiscriminate use of pesticides, this natural control has been disrupted. Insect ecosystem collapse has created a destructive cycle. Beneficial insect population’s decline, increased use of pesticides, pests developing resistance, and introduction of new chemicals damages soil ecosystems while requiring ever-stronger pesticides—each problem worsening the other”.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has prescribed limits for pesticide residues, “but we are crossing the limits,” explains Ahmad.
“People are generally only aware of the honey bee as a pollinator, but there are many other organisms that contribute to pollination. We have lost much of that fauna - like the dragonfly bound to eat the small flies. I remember in my childhood, we used to tie a small matchstick to its back and pretend it was a helicopter. Now, they seem to have disappeared completely.”
In terms of flora, we have lost many precious plant species that were once uncommon but held significant medicinal value,” Shah Zahoor, Lecturer in Botany at Higher Secondary School, Shopian, tells the Kashmir Times.
“Species like podophylum hexandrum (locally known as wan wangun) and Saussurea costus (Kuth) have disappeared from many areas. Similarly, Prunellavulgaris ( kalle wyouth) and Cuminum cyminum (Zyour) are also declining rapidly,” he says.
Impact on Environment & Health
Speaking with the Kashmir Times, Dr. Mohammad Anees, Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Science at Government Degree College Pulwama, explains the impact of pesticides on the environment.
“When we use agrochemicals on fruits or vegetables, they may seem beneficial in the short term, but their detrimental effects outweigh the positives,” he divulges.
He further adds, “When these fertilizers are applied, they mix with the soil and eventually seep into the groundwater table- known as an aquifer. Studies have found nitrate levels as high as 50 mg per litre in ground water, which can cause methemoglobinemia, commonly known as blue baby syndrome.”
“Due to indiscriminate use of pesticide sprays in the spring, residues remain suspended in the air for some time, leading to respiratory problems. These fine particles can penetrate deep into our alveolar tracts,” Dr Anees tells, elaborating on the detrimental impact of pesticides on health.
In 2023, a study conducted by research scholars of SKUAST Kashmir and University of Kashmir revealed that a significant percentage of the drinking water that is fetched from ponds, rivers and streams is contaminated.
The impact goes beyond human life. In response to the concerns raised by several experts, authorities in Kashmir—particularly those involved with the blue economy—are beginning to act. Recently, in Shopian district, the District Officer of the Fisheries Department appealed to farmers to dispose of pesticide rinsates responsibly, warning that improper disposal is contaminating water bodies and leading to the loss of precious fish biodiversity.
Assistant Director of Fisheries Fayaz Ahmad told Kashmir Times that, as a preventive measure, the department has urged orchardists to refrain from contaminating water bodies. “Our department has suffered significant losses in the past due to cytotoxic substances found in the water, he said.”
Chemical pesticides can be carcinogenic, cytotoxic, and mutagenic. According to a joint report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), worldwide, three million people are poisoned and 200,000 die annually due to pesticide exposure.
Uptick in Brain Cancer
In Kashmir, a recent study by Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Srinagar found a link between pesticide exposure and brain cancer among orchard farmers.
A comprehensive and detailed report titled “Pesticides and Brain cancer linked in Orchard Farmers of Kashmir,” published in the National Library of Medicine - a national institute for biotechnology information - is a clear testimony to the fact that the indiscriminate use of pesticides has detrimental effects.
According to the report, Jammu and Kashmir registers over 12,000 new cancer cases annually, with a significant concentration in the southern districts of Kashmir. This uptick correlates with a threefold increase in pesticides usage over the past 12 years.
The SKIMS study found that 90.04% (389 out of 432 patients) of primary malignant brain tumour patients were orchard-farm workers, residents or children with 10-20 years of exposure to neurotoxic and carcinogenic pesticides, with these pesticide-exposed patients having higher-grade tumours compared to non-exposed patients.
Statistical analysis yielded case/control odds ratios that suggest a potential link between pesticide exposure and brain cancer in the Kashmir region.
Dr. Malik Mukhtar, Professor and Head of the Research Centre for Residue and Quality Analysis at SKUAST-Kashmir, clarifies that the 2010 SKIMS report linking pesticides to brain tumours relied on correlation, not causation. While acknowledging pesticides are toxic, he emphasized the need to balance food security with health concerns.
However, from a scientific standpoint, correlation alone does not establish causation. “Concluding that pesticides cause brain tumours solely because patients were involved in farming is not based on scientific rigour."
Talking about actions and policy decisions, he says, “whenever we detect residue levels above permissible limits, we forward the reports to the Ministry. The responsibility for follow-up lies with the government. In some cases, action is being taken.”
Besides, he reveals, his team conducts awareness training for farmers and regularly tests produce for residue. Key problems in Kashmir, he said, include non-judicious pesticide use, poor safety practices, improper application timing, disregard for wind conditions and neglect of agricultural best practices.
He points out that despite higher usage of pesticides in Europe and Japan, their produce often shows zero residue levels because they follow strict protocols. Talking about emulating such examples, Dr. Mukhtar calls for comprehensive government policies to manage pesticide use effectively, and notes, dismally, that in Kashmir farmers often ignore expert recommendations.
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