Monitoring Pesticides in Vegetables and the Environment in Meerut District

Farmers in Meerut many pesticides wich are banned in West due to their carcinogenic characteristics. PSI’s staff, accompanied by the staff of Janhit Foundation, collected soil and vegetable samples from different locations during the end of November 2004 and in May 2005. Considering the nature of pesticides and the possibility of their leaching into the groundwater, samples from dug wells, tube wells, and the nearby Eastern Kali river were also gathered. Fifty samples were analyzed with the help of the Gas Chromatograph in PSI’s EQM lab. Information about the frequency of pesticides applications, quantity and types of pesticides used were obtained from the farmers. This information was used to select the pesticides for quantitative analyses. For sampling, extraction and analyses, EPA methods (8081A and 8141A) were followed.