South Asia

Pest poison killing people: Pesticide-related poisoning is the major cause of death in Bangladesh, an agriculture-based country. Of the 7,438 pesticide-related poisoning deaths recorded since 2008, 8 per cent were due to direct pesticide poisoning and 11 per cent due to respiratory failure, said the country’s 2009 health bulletin. The previous year’s bulletin had no mention of this. Bangladesh suffers an annual crop loss of 10-15 per cent due to pests and diseases.