HC stays decision on dosage of chemical on nets
MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on Thursday stayed a recent decision made by the Central Insecticide Board and Registration Committee (CIB & RC) fixing the dosage of alphacypermethrin on Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) after the litigant submitted that level was fixed without conducting any study on it.
The litigant, M Solomon Bernard Shaw of Madurai, submitted that the Registration Committee of CIB & RC held a meeting on September 24, 2021, in which an application had been filed before it to fix the alphacypermethrin level on LLINs (mosquito nets coating with insecticides) at 0.58% w/w. Though the committee rightly rejected the application, it however decided on December 23, 2021, fixing the said chemical level at 0.55% w/w without conducting the mandatory three-year study on its impact, he alleged.
Shaw stated that LLINs are widely used to tackle mosquito menace and, considering the prolonged exposure by users, especially by children and infants, pointed out that the dosage of insecticides used in the nets ought to be decided carefully to avoid any health risk. Moreover, the Registration Committee exceeded the jurisdiction granted to it by the Insecticides Act, 1968 as there was no application before it to fix the alphacypermethrin level at 0.55% w/w composition, Shaw added. Citing the risks the decision could cause, he requested the court to set aside the committee’s decision. A Bench comprising, Justices Pushpa Sathyanarayana and P Velmurugan, ordered an interim stay against the implementation of the decision. It also issued notice to the CIB&RC Secretary and other related central government departments and adjourned the case for a month.