Comparative study on demographic traits and knowledge levels of farmers, input dealers and spray men on health hazards in pesticide handling

The study mainly focuses on comparing the knowledge levels of farmers, input dealers and spray men who are extensively involved in pesticide handling and also the demographic traits contributing to the same. The study was carried out in Theni district of Tamil Nadu by selecting four blocks that are leading in pesticide consumption in the district. 100 farmers were selected proportionately, 30 input dealers and 30 spray men were selected by adopting snowball sampling method. Data has been collected from the selected samples using a well-prepared interview schedule. The investigation infers that very few respondents are having a high level of knowledge, even among them the contribution of farmers and spray men who are directly exposed to pesticides is very low.