Pesticides Management Bill, 2026

The Union government announces the introduction of an updated Seeds and Pesticide Management Bill in the next Parliament session. The issue is for pesticide regulation, innovation, export safety standards, and control of fake pesticide sales.

Seeds and Pesticide Management Bill:

Dimension	Key Details
Announcing Ministry	The Ministry of Agriculture has announced the updated Seeds and Pesticide Management Bill.
Objective	The bill provides for regulation of production, sale, import, and use of pesticides to ensure efficacy and safety.
Replacement	The bill replaces the Insecticides Act, 1968.
Industry Body	CropLife India has submitted recommendations to address innovation lags and export challenges.
Regulatory Data Protection	The industry recommends a 5-year protection period for environmental research and safety data.
Innovation Challenge	Companies incur high costs on environmental research and safety, and data protection provides incentives for technological innovation.
Innovation Window	A 5-year window provides companies a head start to launch modern products in India.
Old Chemical Use	Continued use of old chemicals can cause pest resistance and over-spraying by farmers.
Export Risk	Indian exports are at risk without modern targeted pesticides that use lower doses.
Tea Export Example	Nearly 40 million kg of tea from Assam is exported to the UK and European nations and faces risk due to strict safety standards.
Black Market Control	The final law is expected to provide for action against black marketing and sale of fake pesticides.
Regulatory Process	The updated bill provides for alignment with international food safety standards and a time-bound regulatory process.
CIBRC	The Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee advises the government on technical matters related to pesticides.
CIBRC Ministry	The Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee is established under the Ministry of Agriculture.