How the Fall Army Worm (FAW) pose a serious threat to agricultural productivity in India? What should Government of India do to prevent it effectively? (200 Words)
Refer - The Indian Express
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 5 years
KEY POINTS
· The Fall Armyworm (FAW), or Spodoptera frugiperda, is an insect that is native to tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas.
· What makes FAW dangerous is the polyphagous (ability to feed on different kinds of food) nature of the caterpillar and the ability of the adult moth to fly more than 100 km per night.
· It prefers maize, but can feed on more than 80 additional species of crops, including rice, sorghum, millet, sugarcane, vegetable crops and cotton.
· Discovered and confirmed only last year, the Fall Army Worm (FAW) has now been detected across 15 districts of Maharashtra.
· As farmers fight drought, indebtedness and falling crop prices, the latest infestation has wrecked havoc across the state. Lack of knowledge and awareness among them as well as state officials further exacerbates the problem.
· The most-preferred host for FAW is sweetcorn, followed by maize and jowar (sorghum) where heavy infestation has been observed.
· In India, FAW has already damaged crops in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu.
Measures to control infestation
· Farmers will need great support through Integrated Pest Management to sustainability manage FAW in their cropping systems.
· Most entomologists have suggested the Integrated Pest Management system to control the pest. This would involve constant surveillance of the pest during its vegetative growth phase and taking measures like mechanically destroying the egg masses and using pheromone traps to catch the insects.
· Pheromone traps are devices which are used to attract male insects by luring them with female pheromones.
· Farmers should also be discouraged from taking up staggered sowing, as this would allow the pest to have multiple reservations for growth.
· Dissemination of information is one of the most potent tools to control the spread of the pest.
SARI 5 years
Please Review.......
IAS Parliament 5 years
Try to answer why FAW is a serious threat to Indian agriculture ? Keep Writing
N.k 5 years
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IAS Parliament 5 years
Good answer. Keep Writing.
IAS Parliament 5 years
KEY POINTS
· The Fall Armyworm (FAW), or Spodoptera frugiperda, is an insect that is native to tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas.
· What makes FAW dangerous is the polyphagous (ability to feed on different kinds of food) nature of the caterpillar and the ability of the adult moth to fly more than 100 km per night.
· It prefers maize, but can feed on more than 80 additional species of crops, including rice, sorghum, millet, sugarcane, vegetable crops and cotton.
· Discovered and confirmed only last year, the Fall Army Worm (FAW) has now been detected across 15 districts of Maharashtra.
· As farmers fight drought, indebtedness and falling crop prices, the latest infestation has wrecked havoc across the state. Lack of knowledge and awareness among them as well as state officials further exacerbates the problem.
· The most-preferred host for FAW is sweetcorn, followed by maize and jowar (sorghum) where heavy infestation has been observed.
· In India, FAW has already damaged crops in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu.
Measures to control infestation
· Farmers will need great support through Integrated Pest Management to sustainability manage FAW in their cropping systems.
· Most entomologists have suggested the Integrated Pest Management system to control the pest. This would involve constant surveillance of the pest during its vegetative growth phase and taking measures like mechanically destroying the egg masses and using pheromone traps to catch the insects.
· Pheromone traps are devices which are used to attract male insects by luring them with female pheromones.
· Farmers should also be discouraged from taking up staggered sowing, as this would allow the pest to have multiple reservations for growth.
· Dissemination of information is one of the most potent tools to control the spread of the pest.
