In India, There is a huge scope for the pest control business to get a kick start. The pest control industry in India is thriving at more than 15% per annum. The pest control business in India employs lakhs of workers as well as lakhs of skilled workers. The term ‘Pest control’ refers to the process of regulating or reducing the noxious, destructive, or dangerous insects or other animals. Pest control plays a huge role in the horticulture industry.
Pest control includes everything a gardener does to prevent pests from attacking their plant and eliminating pest infections once they occur. It includes the use of chemical and organic pesticides and a host of other options such as integrated pest management (IPM), environmental control, sticky traps, good personal hygiene, and more. The other technique of pest control includes biological pest control, which refers to pitting nature against nature. In biological pest control, the beneficial insects are unleashed in a confined area to eat the pest insects.
Pest control plays a major role in Agriculture as pests can have a serious impact on agricultural yields. Even in the urban areas and modern destinations, the damage pest can cause huge. The damage caused by pest poses a threat to the economy, considering how dangerous they are for housing properties and agriculture. Pest control is required for the well-being of human health and ecology.
Thus, with the growing demand for pest control, it gives a perfect opportunity to start a business in pest control. Depending upon the type of pests, there are various pest control methods, including biological pest control, mechanical pest control, physical pest control, biological pest control, field burning, trap cropping, and use of pesticides.
Various Pest Control Methods
Given below are the various pest control methods-
Ancient Pest Control
The most common animal for pest control in ancient times was cats. The cats were used to keep the rodents away in a radius of 50 yards. Even today, introducing cats in the farms can reduce the number of rats and can be a very cheap alternative for professional pest control methods.
Biological Pest Control
Biological pest control is the biological method that reduces the pest population without harming the environment. This technique includes putting bacteria to kill the pests like mosquitoes in the water while still being safe for human consumption. Biological pest control aims to kill dangerous species without affecting the other aspect of nature.
Mechanical Pest Control
Mechanical pest control refers to the use of equipments and devices and attacking the pest, thus preventing their spreading and causing further destruction of the property. This process involves removing anything from the property that would lead to the spreading of pests.
Poisoned Bait
The technique of using poisoned bait for pest control includes feeding rats the poisoned meat to red rid of them. However, effective this technique might be, there is a dangerous side to this effective method.
Field Burning
Filed burning is a traditional method of pest control. After the harvest, the whole field is burnt to kill the species, which are harmful pests, including their eggs.
Pesticides
Pesticides are the most prevalent method of pest control, which can be easily done by anyone. As they also come in the form of sprays makes it very simple to use. However, some substances in pesticides may be harmful to the environment and also cause cancer.
Importance of Pest Control Business in reference to Indian Economy
India has always been vulnerable to the diseases spread by pests. Being the largest producer of food grains in the world, the Indian economy is largely dependent on agricultural produce. But a larger part of its food grains is damaged by harmful rodents and pests, which causes a huge loss to the economy. Thus, controlling the pest in India will greatly help to give a boost to the Indian economy and to maintain public health.
The Scope of the Pest Control Business in India
The Indian pesticide market is worth Rs. One hundred ninety-seven billion in 2018, India becomes the fourth-largest producer of pesticides in the world. The pesticide market is expected to reach a value of Rs. Three hundred sixteen billion by 2024, this is growing at the compound Annual Growth Rate of 8.1% during 2019-2024. According to NOVONOUS estimates, India’s pest control market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 22% in the year 2020. . The pest control business In India has grown to be an INR 20,000 crores, with the top companies having a market share of 57%.
The pest control business in India is one of the safest businesses to run. With the right model, there will be a huge success with the pest control business in India as the demand for the services of a pest control business is stable even in the time of recession. Thus, the pest control business is largely recession-resistant as some infestations are not a one-time thing. Given the nature of the pest, which is mostly cyclical and seasonal, they usually come back. This marked the pest control business in India a huge success. Another good thing about the pest control business is that the terms of business id flexible. The residential buildings, commercial buildings, and even government buildings require pest control. Therefore, the pest control business in India is not limited to a single customer base, but it has diversified customer needs.
Procedure to Start a Pest Control Business in India
The pest control business is very easy to start as it does not require a huge investment, which does this business to prosper in a country like India.
Determining the Pest Control Services
Before starting a pest control business, there is a need to figure out the services which will make the most sense to the type of business you want to do. One has to start thinking about the area and problem prevalent in such areas to provide pest control services. Such services include residential, commercial, one-time services, termite control, fumigation, rodent control, mosquitoes control, trapping varmints, etc. while determining the types of services; one has to be mindful of the weather changes too.
Training and Skill Development
One of the most important steps to start the pest control business in India is to acquire proper training and skill in the required field. In pursuance of which the Government of India has made it mandatory to get a proper training license as this field involves hazardous chemicals.
After registering yourself for the training on the government site of the Indian Pest Control Association (IPCA), the required candidate can receive a certificate after getting trained. The government will issue such a certificate on completion of the training period. With the approval of the person who has completed IPCA’s training, one can start the pest control business In India even without the license.
Criteria of Eligibility to start a Pest Control business in India
The eligibility criteria to start a pest control business in India will be that such a person must be above 18 years. Such a person must have a pragmatic pesticide application experience as enrolled at any rate of time. A fifteen days training in fumigation and prophylaxis program is mandatory, which must be prepared by the NIPHM, CFTRI, or NPPTI. A degree in science will also be eligible to be qualified in lieu of the experience required above. Another requirement to start a pest control business in India is that such a person must have acquired a legitimate vermin control permit endorsement.
Registration of the Pest Control Business in India
After acquiring proper training, a person is required to register himself for a license. There are two modes to get registered for starting the pest control business in India, which includes an offline registration and an online mode of registration.
To apply for the Pesticide license, one needs to contact the Deputy Commissioners office. In order to apply for the registration, one needs to make sure whether he is qualified for the application. He can do so by checking the qualification models provided under the qualification segment. After getting the proper permit, all the necessary records are recorded under the Required Documents segment.
Following are the other steps for registration for a license-
- Get registered as a new user on the official website of pesticide registration of India.
- Fill the required forms and complete the required details of the form.
- Attaching the documents required for the purpose.
- Payment either by online or offline mode.
- Submission of the application
License Requirements to start a Pest Control Business in India
- The Central Insecticides Board & Registration Committee will facilitate that the insecticides used for starting a pest control business are safe to use.
- For the purpose of manufacturing the insecticides, you need to acquire a license granting permission to manufacture the insecticides.
- For selling, stocking, and distribute insecticide, a license is required for that purpose.
- A license for using restricted insecticides for commercial operators will be required.
Every application must be made in such a way that it must contain all the prescribed particulars. The license can be granted on the conditions mentioned in the form and on payment of the fees as prescribed. Such a license will be adequate for a specified period, and it must be renewed from time to time.
The validity of the License
The pesticide license will expire in a year. The renewal applications will be mailed to the applicants before it gets expired. The due license fees and a surcharge will have to be paid at the time of renewal.
Time of Processing the License
Once the valid application is presented, it will take 6 to 7 months to process.
The general requirements to complete the procedure to acquire the license are below-
- Full name, address, and status of the applicant
- Category of the business
- Premises Address
- The common name, trade name, and brand name of the insecticides
- To import the insecticide, the name and address of the manufacturer, as well as the name and address of the supplier, is required.
- Country registration
- Details of chemical formulation, in case of manufacturing
- Details of the shelf life of products
- Information on the insecticide storage condition
- Instructions on storage and first aid, including the precautionary measures
- Details regarding the payment of the fees
- The plant disease, insects and other poisonous animals and weeds which are intended to be used
- An application form including the verification, signed by the applicant, duly authorized by him.
- One self-addressed stamped envelope and one stamped envelope enclosed along with the application
Pesticide Management Bill 2020, to Regulate the Pest Control Business in India
The new pesticide management bill, 2020, has been introduced in the Parliament of India. With the realization of modern techniques and harmful effects on the environment, the government has realized it to b a high-time to bring new legislation in this respect. The pesticide management bill, 2020, was approved by the Union Cabinet on 12th February 2020. The new Bill has replaced the existing Insecticide Act, 1968, which was mentioned by Mr. Prakash Javadekar as an age-old and which needs to re-write.
The pesticide management bill aims to promote the production and distribution of safe and effective pesticides in the Indian market. It has been made to protect the crop losses due to the use of harmful products. This bill will, in turn, access the potential after-effects of these pesticides on the environment as well as on public health.
Key Points of the Pesticide Management Bill, 2020
- The new bill has introduced mandatory registration for all the individuals who wish to import, manufacture, or export the pesticides.
- It aims to regulate the pesticide advertisement in order to prevent misleading claims on the part of the manufacturers and to avoid confusion among the farmers.
- The manufacturers who will violate the law will be subject to a heavy penalty in addition to an imprisonment of up to five years.
- The bill plays a major role in regulating the poor quality pesticides that cause significant crop losses, as heavy as Rs. Thirty thousand crores and also having harmful effects on human health and the environment.
- The bill will play a key role in regulating the counterfeits of pesticides. With the names resembling the original counterparts are produced secretly, have accounted for 30% of the $4 billion pesticide market.
Thus, from the above points, we can understand how Bill plays a key role in improving the pest control business in India.
Conclusion
The Indian government has played a significant role in regulating pesticide production by introducing a pesticide management bill, 2020; by this bill, now the responsibility of the pesticide manufacturers to produce and distribute only those products that are of value to the farmers. In addition to this, effective measures are being taken by the government to educate the farmers on the importance of using high-quality pesticides and to provide them with the tools to help them differentiate between the authorized and counterfeit pesticides. It will, in turn, help to give a major boost to the pest control business in India. The growing pest control business in India will not only help the farmers to safeguard their crops against a plethora of pest attacks but will also help in generating employment and boosting the Indian economy.
Keeping the importance of pest control business in mind in reference to the Indian economy, the government has been introducing various schemes and initiatives to boost this sector. By booting this sector and inclusive growth will be seen together with employment generation. In line with the government, our organization Aatmnirbhar Sena is working hard to provide financial assistance to people who dream of starting a pest control business in India.
Not only this, our organization Aatmnirbhar Sena, is providing various loans to the budding entrepreneurs to start-up their business and providing assistance by educating the farmers about the use of pesticides in their farms. Thus, with this, we can say that with the growing scope of the pest control business in India, the day is not far when India will lead in the pest control businesses worldwide.
