Officials of the Organic Farming Council of Punjab said they had registered farmers practicing organic farming on more

than 5,000 acres in the state. The figure is likely to cross 6,000 acres soon. The council, established in 2006 by the Punjab Government, helps farmers get their fields certified free of cost so that they can sell their produce as organic products.

Around 1,000 farmers in Punjab have registered themselves with the council and the maximum - 70 - are from Sangrur district. A large number of citrus fruit growers from Ferozepur too have registered themselves with the council.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2011/20110606/punjab.htm#14}

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Punjab Agriculture Minister Sucha Singh Langah appealed to the farmers to adopt organic farming. (The Government is also on the road to approve and encourage Organic Farming) Pesticide Usage in the state stood at 923 grams per hectare in 2006- 2007 which automatically puts the farmer in a high usage bracket. Accordingly Punjab has the highest usage of Pesticides in the country. The reckless application of pesticides and chemical fertilizers has also contaminated water bodies. A November 2009 study Ground water Quality Irrigation in Punjab by Government bodies reported that 42 percent of ground water has sodic and saline elements. The agricultural growth rate in Punjab has slowed down 5 percent in 1980s to 1.9 percents in the 2000s. {Source;
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/feb/agr-punjab.htm

The lush fields of Punjab hide a scary tale. Farmers live in a disturbing cesspool of toxicity, a result of excessive and unregulated use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. For one,

Punjab farmers' use of pesticides is 923 g/ha, way above the national average of 570 g/ha (grams per hectare).

Malwa is also Punjab's cotton belt; cotton crops are prone to pests. Farmers here use at least 15 different pesticide sprays. Of the top 15 pesticides used, the US's Environmental Protection Agency considers seven used on cotton in the US as 'possible', 'likely', 'probable,' or 'known' human carcinogens (acephate, dichloropropene, diuron, fluometuron, pendimethalin, tribufos, and trifluralin).

Fertilizer use is also sky high: at 380 kg/ha (kilo per hectare), it is the highest in India, almost three times the national average of 131 kg/ ha, as per the National Centre for Agricultural Economics and Policy Research. 2010- 2011: 207.30 MT pesticides were used 2009-2010: 189.35 MT pesticides were used 2008-2009: 185.42 MT pesticides were used {Source: District Agricultural Department, Govt of Punjab} Malwa region 75% of pesticides usage in the state- Govt Environment Report, 2007. Often termed as the cancer district of the state. 2008 survey by Centre for science and Environment (CSE) found some 15 types of pesticides in 20 blood samples collected from farmers in Bhatinda. A morbid mixture of around 13 pesticides was found in each sample. {Source: Hindustan Times Report: Toxic fields: Pesticides Use up: 2nd March, 2011}

Kheti Virasat Mission: Organic Farming Mission in Punjab: Convenor: Umendra Dutt. (He has been featured everywhere and also quoted everywhere)

The above report, which analysed sample food items from 13 states in 20 laboratories across the country between 2008 and 2009, also found several of these food products had residues of pesticides that are either banned in the country or are recommended for restricted use. DDT, for instance, is not recommended for vegetables.

But traces of it108 times the recommended MRLwas found in tomatoes. Residues of banned pesticides like aldrin, chlordane, chlorfenyinfos and heptachlor were found in samples of vegetables, apple, rice, wheat, milk and butter; most were from Uttar Pradesh. {Source: http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/pesticide-rich-food }

Punjab represents only 1.5 percent of Indias geography but accounts for nearly a 20 percent share of its pesticide consumption.