Bt-cotton can resist American bollworm upto 40 years, says CICR
29 Jul '05
4 min read
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has initiated a net-working project in 2004, to carefully monitor resistance development in all the 9 cotton growing states of the country and also to scientifically analyze all factors that contribute to resistance development.
The national net-working group has been given the task of developing resistance management strategies from time to time every year and disseminate them to all the stakeholders, including the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), the state agricultural Universities, Government institutions, farmers, Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), etc. Based on the simulation analysis using the 'Bt-Adapt' model and scientific data available, so for CICR has proposed some important resistance management strategies to the GEAC.
The strategies place emphasis on reducing populations of H. armigera that survive Bt cotton and enhancement of area of alternate host crops that are as attractive as cotton to H. armigera, to be used as trap crop or intercrop refuges.
If proper pest management measures are followed to ensure that at least 90 per cent of the surviving larvae of the American bollworms in Bt-cotton fields, are killed with biopesticides, resistance can be delayed to 45 years even with 40 per cent area under Bt cotton. The strategies, that would enable extending the usefulness of Bt technology would be:-
(i) Use eco-friendly methods such as cultural control or hand-picking of surviving bollworms in Bt cotton fields. Deep-ploughing of fields immediately after Bt-cotton, harvest to destroy resistant pupae.
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