Pre-harvest interval (PHI) is a critical component of good agricultural practices. The problem of pesticide residual effect in brinjal could be minimized through practicing PHI. A study was conducted to determine the extent of PHI practice after pesticide application by the brinjal farmers of Shahjahanpur upazila in Bogura district of Bangladesh. Data were collected from 210 brinjal farmers from July 2022 to September 2022 through personal interview and focus group discussions (FGDs). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that majority of the brinjal growers of the study area practiced PHI at the level of highly toxic in October (62%) and November (51.3%), moderately toxic in December (83.5%), January (85.4%) and February (74.5%), slightly toxic in March (51%) and April (62.9%). Overall, the practice scenario of pre-harvest interval by a large portion of the brinjal farmers (97%) fell into unsafe categories whereas only 3% of them practiced pre-harvest interval at a safe level. Survey responses indicated that extensive inaccurate pesticide usage, particularly inadequate practice of PHI, endangers human health and the environment. It is suggested that the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), other GOs, and NGOs should take necessary joint efforts to instruct brinjal farmers on pesticide residue management by practicing recommended PHI and observing prudent pesticide use with reference to safe brinjal production
Key words: PHI practice, Pesticide Toxicity, Brinjal Farmers, Bangladesh
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