"Cotton bollworm menace worries Punjab, more than 4,000 hectares affected"
A detailed field survey by the Punjab Agriculture Department has said that early sowing of cotton in 2% of the total area under cotton in various districts is putting a provisional area of 1.75 lakh hectares at risk of infection with the deadly pink bollworm this year.
Experts said untimely rains with the onset of summer this year provided suitable breeding and feeding grounds for the pest.
The next three weeks are critical for farmers to use the recommended steps to detect pest populations and check for any widespread infestations. PBW has surfaced in limited locations, but it can spread rapidly and potentially threaten crops in other areas if pest control management is not executed effectively, he says.
This year, a section of farmers from vulnerable areas of Punjab started sowing 'white gold' as early as March 28, much before the recommended sowing time of April 15 to May 15, agriculture officials said. The pest attacks cotton plants at flowering stage in mid-July and PBW is already visible, posing a risk of infection to other fields.
State agriculture director Gurvinder Singh, who made an extensive tour of cotton-growing districts this week, said the current situation was not alarming and farmers were advised to use recommended sprays to control the pest population.
The director said that unlike last season, whitefly has not been detected this year and cotton growers have been advised to be vigilant.
Field surveys revealed impressive plant health. “In 2022, most of the plant growth had stopped, but this time farmers are following an advisory to provide enough nutrients to the crop. This trend may help in reducing the adverse effects of pests,” he said.
Punjab saw the first appearance of PBW in 2020 on about 100 acres of land at Jodhpur Romana in Bathinda. The following year, the pest severely affected other districts and in 2022, whitefly and PBW ravaged cotton production in Punjab.
In the current kharif season, the traditional crop area in Punjab has come down to 1.75 lakh hectares and farmers have suffered heavy losses due to pest attack, which is responsible for the lowest acreage ever.
Vijay Kumar, principal entomologist at Ludhiana-based Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), said early sowing of cash crops in such areas has been observed for the first time and is a cause of concern for pest attack. accompanied by prolonged wet and humid conditions and when the cotton plants reached the flowering stage.
The expert said the bollworm is affecting only those fields from where last year's residues were not cleared as advised and making other areas vulnerable to pest infestation.
“Bollworm is a deadly pest which appears in cotton plant at flowering stage, 65-70 days after sowing. It is monophagous or feeds only on cotton plants and affects the plant at flowering stage. Now farmers will have to work harder to control the pest population till mid-July when timely sown plants will enter flowering stage,” said the expert.
SK Verma, head of Sirsa-based Central Institute of Cotton Research (CICR), said uniformity in sowing helps in effective pest management and farmers should strictly follow the recommended sowing time. "Bollworm infestation can be easily detected in the field by pheromone traps that catch male insects and an advisory has been issued to the farmers of Punjab in this regard," he added.
