A government monitoring programme has found pesticide residues above the prescribed safety limits in 2,223 food samples collected across India between 2023 and 2026.
The samples were collected from markets under the Ministry of Agriculture’s National Pesticide Residue Monitoring (MPRNL) programme.
A total of 70,652 samples of vegetables, fruits, spices, cereals, pulses, herbs, tea, milk and eggs were tested during the period. Of these, 2,223 were found to contain pesticide residues above the maximum residue limits (MRLs) prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
The samples were collected from 23 states and Union territories, including Karnataka, Telangana, Punjab, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Jharkhand, Delhi and Chhattisgarh.
Among the states highlighted in the data, Karnataka recorded the highest number of samples in which pesticide residues exceeded the prescribed FSSAI limits.
The state had 9,176 samples tested, of which 334 were found to have pesticide levels above the safe limit.
Maharashtra followed, with 260 such samples out of 5,295 tested. Gujarat recorded 170 cases from 6,035 samples, while Haryana reported 152 cases from 2,371 samples.
The presence of pesticide residues above prescribed limits is a food-safety concern because consumers can be exposed to chemicals through food.
The report highlights concerns around pesticides such as organophosphates and endocrine-disrupting chemicals. It links exposure to concerns including cancer, tumours, hormonal disturbances and developmental problems.
The report also raises concerns about exposure among pregnant women and the possibility of chemicals affecting unborn children, including through potential developmental and cognitive effects.
The report also examines the argument that India’s pesticide consumption per hectare is relatively low compared with several other countries.
It points out that a national average can mask significant differences in pesticide use across regions and crops.
Large agricultural areas may have relatively low pesticide use, bringing down the national average. At the same time, crops such as fruits and vegetables intended for direct consumption may see substantially higher pesticide application.
The report argues that looking only at the national average therefore does not provide the complete picture of pesticide exposure through food.
Another issue raised in the report is the continued availability in India of pesticides that have been banned in some other countries over concerns about their impact on human health.
It questions why chemicals that are prohibited in countries such as the US, Germany and Japan continue to be manufactured and sold in India.
The report also raises concerns about the role of agrochemical companies and the regulatory system in determining which chemicals remain available for use.
The report highlights the limited availability of pesticide-testing facilities at the local level.
It argues that consumers currently have limited avenues to get food tested themselves and calls for a wider network of testing laboratories.
According to the report, testing facilities should be available closer to consumers, including at mandis and local levels, so that contaminated food can be identified before it reaches households.
The report suggests three broad measures to address the issue of pesticide residues in food.
First, it calls for mandatory testing at large agricultural markets, districts and blocks, backed by a network of government laboratories capable of conducting random tests. It also recommends that food lots found to contain pesticide levels above prescribed limits should be seized and destroyed.
Second, it calls for pesticides that have been banned in other countries because of concerns over human health to also be prohibited for domestic use in India.
Third, it recommends greater participation of independent scientists and public-health experts in regulatory bodies such as FSSAI and the pesticide regulatory system. It argues that such experts should not have financial links with pesticide companies.
The data cited in the report puts the focus on the gap between pesticide use in agriculture and what ultimately reaches consumers.
Of the 70,652 samples tested under the national monitoring programme between 2023 and 2026, 2,223 were found to have pesticide residues above the prescribed FSSAI limits.
The issue, therefore, is not only how much pesticide is used across Indian agriculture on average, but whether food reaching consumers contains residues above the permitted levels and whether testing and enforcement mechanisms are adequate to identify such cases.