New Delhi, May 13 (IANS) The Supreme Court Friday banned the production, distribution and use of endosulfan because the pesticide has debilitating effects on humans and the environment.

 
 A three-judge bench of Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia, Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan and Justice Swatanter Kumar passed the order after hearing a petition filed by the Democratic Youth Federation of India.
 
 The petition said the use of the pesticide for optimising agricultural production was creating an alarming danger to health and safety of human beings in general and agricultural workers in particular.
 
 The petition said that endosulfan also had hazardous effects on the environment.