Say no to pesticides

This refers to the letter ‘Summer crops’ (Oct 4) by Khan Faraz. Pakistan’s economy is 26 percent based on agriculture. Farmers across the country plant different types of crops, including cotton, wheat, rice sugarcane etc. They use a number of pesticides to protect the crops. They do not know that these pesticides are dangerous not only for humans but also for animals. And these pesticides remain in water and in the soil for many years.

Nevertheless, every problem has its solution; farmers across China, Japan, Iran, and France are using ducks instead of pesticides to protect human, animals, and the environment. This ancient way of farming is becoming popular again. Specially-bred ducks are put into paddies to eat insects and weeds, and they leave the rice unarmed; at harvest time, they remove the ducks so that they do not eat the rice. I request farmers across the country to not use pesticides, and look for alternatives.

Abrar Moosa

Karachi