Port Blair, March 13: Agriculture in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands faces unique challenges that arise from the region's geographical and climatic characteristics. Though many of the dreadful pathogens and insect pests of various commercial crops do not occur in the islands, the crops suffer from the pest/ pathogen damage in the absence of appropriate sustainable plant protection measures.
Some of the biotic stresses faced by the crops in Andaman and Nicobar Islands include Rhinoceros Beetle in coconut, Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV), bacterial wilt and Phytophthora blight in vegetables, quick and slow wilt in black pepper, bacterial leaf blight and yellow stem borer in rice, pod borer in pulses and polyphagous pests such as mealy bugs, leaf miner, whitefly etc. Further, introduction of new crops without following appropriate quarantine measures could also pose the risk of inadvertent introduction of new pests in these islands. Increased awareness among the stakeholders spread across the scattered islands, early detection of diseases and pests, integrated pest management practices and designing appropriate policy measures are essential to safeguard the island agriculture.
In order to address the above burning issues, Andaman Science Association (ASA) and ICAR- CIARI is jointly organizing a Workshop on “Sustainable Plant Protection Strategies for Andaman and Nicobar Islands (SPPS- 2024)” on 21st – 22nd March 2024 at its Garacharma Research Complex.Dr. E.B. Chakurkar, Director, ICAR-CIARI & President, ASA is the convener of the event.
The objectives of the workshop are to create awareness about the emerging plant protection challenges in the islands, to bring out recommendations on sustainable disease and pest management practices appropriate for island grown crops and to facilitate knowledge exchange and networking among farmers, agricultural experts, and extension functionaries. The event would include talks by the invited experts on both the days besides an exclusive interaction session involving various stakeholders on island specific pest and disease issues.
Interested stakeholders including Scientists, academicians, progressive farmers, relevant officials of various departments, students and research scholars of Agriculture, Horticulture,Life Sciences background, and gardening enthusiasts may register for the event by 18.03.2024.Detailed brochure of the event is available on the Institute website (https://ciari.icar.gov.in). For more details, one may contact Dr. Pooja Bohra, Scientist & Organizing Secretary (SPPS-2024) on +919933263442 or drop an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..