Globally growing demand for agricultural and farm foods has more or less become dependent on chemical pesticides to maintain the supply chain, which undoubtedly boosts agricultural production. However, pesticides not only impact the target pests but cause hazard to human health. Pesticides are ubiquitous and can be found in almost every component of the environment. They can therefore impair human and biota health when present over the threshold level. The present study assessed the concentration of commonly used pesticides for agricultural purposes but get mixed in different sources of water, as such fifteen sampling sites along the upper Jhelum basin of Kashmir valley were chosen. For the analysis, 60 water samples were obtained from different water sources. Gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was used to determine pesticide residues in water samples. Pesticide residues from 10 of the 26 commonly used pesticides were detected in water samples. Difenoconazole had the highest concentration among the pesticides detected, with a mean concentration of 0.412±0.424μg/L ranging from 0.0μg/L to 0.8196μg/L. The target hazards quotient (THQ) was used to quantify the possible noncarcinogenic health risks associated with drinking pesticide-contaminated water. Only chlorpyrifos and quinalphos were detected >1 in RWS3 (1.6571), RWS4 (1.0285), RWS14 (1.2571), and RWS15 (1.2000) sample sites, implying that the drinking water poses a health risk to humans. Hence, pesticide hazards should be mitigated and rigorous monitoring is needed to reduce pesticide residues in drinking water.

Financial investments in apple cultivation in Kashmir valley are increasingly recognized as key drivers of economic growth and employment creation. This paper presents a comprehensive economic analysis across physiographic divisions using precise economic indices that include cost-benefit analysis, project evaluation method and other socio-economic determinants. It relies on a primary survey of 866 farm-households selected across four physiographic divisions of the Kashmir valley viz- valley floor, karewas, foothills and side valleys. Results reveal that the karewas fetch the highest returns from an investment owing to its ideal geographical conditions. On contrary, the non-karewas belt was found to be trailing in one or more economic indices although the financial feasibility of investment in apple cultivation was still found satisfactory. The study affirms that agricultural land-use decisions at the micro-scale should be determined by the site-specific attributes and that economic indices are largely dictated by physical characteristics of land itself. While demonstrating the utility of land-use decisions in light of geographical factors, our results can assist both farmers and policy-makers to design a more adapted land use strategy for fostering financial investments in apple cultivation in the valley.

Water is the most significant natural resource for all living beings on the planet. The quality of water is considered the main factor linked to the status of health and disease in living organisms, including humans. The present study aims to assess the quality of water in the upper Jhelum basin of the Kashmir Himalayas. A multi-stage sampling technique has been used. To achieve the measured values for quality assessment, a total of 60 water samples were collected from various drinking water sources. The data was analyzed using suitable statistical techniques and relevant methods of water quality assessment. The results were compared with standard norms of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The inferences revealed that most of the sampling sites had either excellent or good water quality, except for the sites encoded as RWS1, RWS4, RWS5, RWS6, RWS13 and RWS14, which depicted poor water quality. The findings revealed that water quality fluctuations are caused by anthropogenic activities such as domestic waste, agriculture and horticulture, as well as natural processes such as weathering and erosion. In general, the inferential statistics revealed that water quality varies from excellent to moderately polluted. Thus, proper purification and timely monitoring of water bodies must be ensured. The purpose of the study is to suggest remedial measures to ease the deterioration and related repercussions in the future.