by Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The excessive use of pesticides is causing eye infections, skin diseases and respiratory problems among cotton workers.

These were the findings of Naila Hussain, a Lahore-based environment and development consultant shared the findings of her research on working conditions of cotton pickers in southern Punjab as revealed in a seminar on ‘Picking and Pesticide Poisoning, Working Conditions of Cotton Pickers’, organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) on Monday. Ms Hussain said that there had been an increase in the use of pesticides and criticised multinationals for marketing pesticides without providing any information about its effects on human health.

She stated that eye infections, skin irritation, kidney problems and respiratory diseases such as asthma are common among cotton pickers due to their exposure to poisonous residues. “Lack of awareness and poverty exacerbates the situation,” she added. She said that political will and coordination is required to implement farmer friendly policies. She recommended a ban on pesticides such as dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT).

Dr Karin Astrid Siegman of SDPI presented a comparative analysis of the working conditions of cotton pickers before and after the abolition of quota restrictions in the textile and clothing (T & C) trade. She explained that before the quota expiry, women workers had lack of alternative income sources and low bargaining power because of poor education, poverty, gender discrimination and labour surplus. ‘‘In addition, they face sexual harassment and pesticide-induced health problems,” she said.