Pesticide Factories Raided; 15 Samples Collected for Quality Testing
Media Report, Sonipat-

Ahead of the Rabi season, the Agriculture Department has launched a campaign to ensure farmers receive high-quality pesticides. On the first day of the initiative, Wednesday, a joint team from the Agriculture Departments of Faridabad and Sonipat conducted raids at pesticide manufacturing units in areas including Ghassouli.

During the inspections, the team collected 15 pesticide samples—2 by the Faridabad team and 13 by the Sonipat team. These samples will be sent to different laboratories for testing, and further action will be taken based on the results.

The campaign will run for three days. While the focus on the first day was on factories, the next two days will involve inspections in various regions across the district.

Physical Verification of Direct Paddy Sowing (DSR) Conducted:

Alongside the pesticide quality drive, a team from the Panchkula headquarters visited Sonipat for physical verification of direct-seeded rice (DSR). In collaboration with the Sonipat agriculture department, the team inspected paddy fields in villages including Agwanpur, Gyaspur, Dubheta, and Umedgarh in the Gannaur and Rai blocks.

Farmers who adopt direct seeding of paddy are eligible for a subsidy of ?4,500 per acre, which is disbursed after physical verification. This season, DSR has been carried out on over 20,000 acres in Sonipat district. On Wednesday, field inspections were done to verify DSR implementation, while 15 pesticide samples were sent to labs for testing.

— Dr. Pawan Sharma, Deputy Director, Agriculture, Sonipat