Syngenta along with District Administration of Yavatmal announce several safety measures for farmers prior to Kharif season

Yavatmal, July 1, 2022: On the occasion of Maharashtra ‘Krishi Din’, Syngenta in partnership with the District administration of Yavatmal issued a joint advisory for farmers on the precautions to be followed while undertaking spraying activities in the upcoming Kharif season. The advisory covers the five Golden Rules that the farmers should adopt while spraying agrochemicals that include: Need for reading & understanding the product label before its use; Use of appropriate personal protective equipment; Maintaining application equipment in good working condition; Exercising caution at all times when handling a product; & Practicing good personal hygiene before, during and after using crop protection products.

Syngenta is also undertaking a number of awareness and training programs to educate farmers on the precautions to be undertaken while spraying. Another unique initiative that Syngenta is undertaking is also to create cotton model farms where besides the demonstration of the safe use practices, the farmers will also be given training on how to tackle the pink bollworm problem affecting the crops. A stewardship film, jointly made by the Government of Maharashtra and Syngenta, would also be extensively broadcast through WhatsApp and other mediums to the farmers and spray men. Syngenta is also undertaking training sessions to create certified spray men so that all precautions are followed during spraying activities.

On the occasion of Krishi Din, Syngenta also flagged off Mobile Health Van to provide basic health services to remote villages not covered by Primary Health Centres.  The mobile health van has so far covered 80,000 people and will continue this year also to provide basic health facilities to the rural communities in Yavatmal.

I-SAFE is an ambitious, and unique program, that is designed to bring about holistic shift in farmers behaviour while using agro-chemicals and ensuring their safety. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that other than targeting farmers, I-SAFE also comprises of doctor awareness programs for quick and early detection of accidental exposure cases. Four mobile vans will be deployed this season to create awareness in 1000 villages of Yavatmal and adjoining districts of Akola and Amravati. Under the I-SAFE initiative, Syngenta India has been training farmers extensively so that they take all the precautions during spraying activities.

I-SAFE initiative will also look into aspects of emotionally connecting with the farmers and spraying community through counselling sessions highligtling the need and importance of taking precautions to safeguard his health as the breadwinner of the family.

Dr K C Ravi, Chief Sustainability Officer, Syngenta India, said, “We’re immensely grateful to the Yavatmal District administration for placing their trust on us, and we’re humbled by the success of our very innovative stewardship program I-SAFE, that has made farmers and other stakeholders aware in significant ways,”

Dr Ravi said that Syngenta India as the nodal agency appointed by the Government of Maharashtra is committed to partner with Yavatmal District Administration, NGOs and other stakeholders to ensure that farmers adopt healthy and safe agriculture practices.

Syngenta India in collaboration with the District Administration of Yavatmal is making concerted efforts to make our famers and spraymen safe and healthy through a holistic approach under its I-SAFE initiative.”

Talking about the achievements of the I-SAFE program, Dr Ravi informed that between 2019 - 2021 despite Covid induced lockdowns, Syngenta trained 1190 certified spray men, distributed 45,000 PPE kits, trained 57,000 farmers, a mobile health van has extended services to 80,000 people, trained 900 doctors, and given counseling to 1700 spray men.