‘Need to be vigilant of insect threats in Pb’

Ludhiana: A one-day sensitization workshop on ‘Impending Insect Threats in Punjab’ was organized at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) on Saturday. The Department of Entomology, PAU, and ICAR-Indian Institute of Maize Research (IIMR), PAU Campus, Ludhiana, conducted the workshop to deliberate on the problems of the pests, namely fall armyworm, pink bollworm and desert locust.
Director of Extension Education at PAU, J S Mahal, who was the chief guest, said, “The present scenario calls for staying alert about insect pests and diseases, attacking various crops in Punjab as well as in India.” Sharing his experience, he called upon the extension functionaries to update their knowledge about identification and management tactics of various insect pests and diseases, before transferring it to the farmers.
The guest of honour ICAR-IIMR director Sujay Rakshit said, “The attack of fall armyworm is a biotic challenge being faced by maize crop in India. Fall armyworm is a voracious feeder and spreads very fast. We have experience on dealing with the same and there is no need to panic,” he added.
BD Sharma, an expert from Central Integrated Pest Management Centre (CIPMC), Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, said, “Fall armyworm, pink bollworm and desert locust have been observed in UP, Haryana and Rajasthan, respectively. They have not attacked crops in Punjab, but as they have been observed in neighbouring states, we need to remain vigilant.”