According to reports, the prohibition has been put in place to prevent the selling of fake fertilizers and pesticides.
All Chief Agriculture Officers in the state have received orders not to grant any new license at the district level until the state government has made a decision in this regard.
“If it is absolutely necessary to issue a license, the permission for it should be taken from the head office of the Agriculture Department,” read the directives given by the Agriculture Department's Joint Director.
The granting of licenses to small manufacturers, retailers, and those who get licenses for sales throughout the state is prohibited. Top department officials claim that the decision was made in order to control the sale of fertilizers and pesticides.
It has been reported that the state has close to 20,000 pesticide and fertilizer shops.
Farmers and young people worry that the shift will kill many opportunities for employment, thus they are not happy about it. Farmers claim that numerous young people had applied for the license after finishing a one-year diploma program in agricultural sciences.
To be eligible for this license, you must have a degree in agriculture sciences, science, or an agricultural diploma.
The idea of imposing a moratorium on the issuance of new licenses was also brought up during a meeting between Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal and the fertilizer and pesticide dealers' association last month.
Numerous dealers apparently oppose the issuance of additional licences and voiced their opposition during the meeting.
The general secretary of BKU Ekta-Ugrahan, Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan, claimed that switching from chemical-based agriculture to natural farming was urgently needed.
