Bt Cotton Reduces Pesticide Use in India
July 31, 2009 Fiber2Fashion
After the introduction of Bt cotton, use of pesticides for cotton crops in India been greatly reduced, though not stopped completely. But this reduction is good and proving as a healthy sign for better soil and environment, said Keshav Kranthi, acting director of Central Institute of Cotton Research (CICR).
Out of the total land area under variety of crops, cotton covers just 5 percent of land. But it needed more than 50 percent of total pesticides in the country. Pesticides consumption of cotton crops ideally should have stopped completely with the introduction of Bt cotton, he said.
Though the use of pesticides hasn’t slipped down to zero, its minimum use is enhancing the health of soil in the cotton growing belts of the country. Bt cotton is a good substitute to conventional cotton and is environmental friendly.
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