ICAR, Manipur Centre organised National Workshop on “Management of Fall Army Worm in the Scientific Production of Maize”
Recently, maize cultivation in the North Eastern States is under threat from a new invasive pest, native to USA, the Fall Army Worm, Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae). The ICAR Manipur Centre for the first time reported the incidence of fall armyworm in Manipur state in the month of May, 2019. Owing to the urgent need of addressing the farmer’s requirement for management of Fall Army Worm and scientific package and practices for enhancement of their productivity, a two days National Workshop on “Management of Fall Armyworm in the Scientific Production of Maize” was organised jointly by ICAR-RC-NEH Region, Manipur centre and ICAR-Indian Institute of Maize Research (IIMR), Ludhiana, Punjab under collaborative project “Promoting improved technology of maize production in NEH Region” under NEH programme during 17-18 May, 2019 at ICAR, Imphal, Manipur. The workshop was inaugurated by Shri Sumant Singh, IAS, Agriculture Commissioner, Govt. of Manipur; Ms Laltanpuii Vanchhong, Director, Department of Agriculture, Govt. of Manipur; Prof. K. Mamocha Singh, Registrar, CAU, Imphal; Dr. J. C. Sekhar, Principal Scientist & WNC I/C, ICAR-IIMR, Hyderabad; Dr. N. Sathyanarayana, Joint Director, Directorate of Plant protection, Quarantine & Storage, Faridabad; Dr. Narendra Prakash, Director, ICAR-RC-NEH Region, Umiam; Dr. I. Meghachandra Singh, Joint Director, ICAR-RC-NEH Region, Manipur centre, Lamphelpat and Dr. S. L. Jat, Coordinator IIMR-NEH Maize programme. Chief Guest Shri Sumant Singh, IAS, Agriculture Commissioner, Govt. of Manipur appreciated the initiative of ICAR, Manipur Centre and IIMR to bring all the stakeholders together in order to create the preparedness to tackle the menace of Fall Army Worm at the state level. Other dignitaries highlighted the threat posed by this invasive pest and called for designing effective strategies to manage this pest so that farmers could realise high economic returns from the cultivation of crops. Importance of use of bio-pesticides and natural enemies in the control of Fall Army Worm was emphasized. The inaugural programme ended with the vote of thanks by Dr. M.A. Ansari, PI of the maize project for NEH Region. Detailed technical sessions and Farmers’ Scientists’ interaction were also organised with emphasis on management of Fall Army Worm menace in the State and ways to protect the crops from it. Around 170 farmers, 140 invitees from line departments all over the state & CAU and 60 Scientists and Subject Matter Specialist of ICAR participated in the workshop.
