Kerala - Kozhikode   

Seminar to focus on pest management

By Our Staff Reporter

KOZHIKODE, JAN. 8. The Post-Graduate Department of Zoology St. Joseph's College Devagiri here will organise a national seminar on `Insect growth regulators and natural products in insect pest management' on the campus on January 11.

The one-day seminar, sponsored by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the State Government, will provide a platform for scientists, teachers, research scholars, environmental activists and post-graduate students to discuss recent trends in `insect pest management' in view of the hazards in using conventional synthetic insecticides.

The Head of the Department, A.T. Thomas, said that in recent years many of the established methods of insect control, especially the use of insecticides, have come under increasing criticism owing to the detrimental side effects on non-target organisms and the ecosystem in general.

Growing concern

There is also a growing concern among people over the accumulation of pesticides in food chains and the effects that trace levels of dietary pesticides have on human beings. Repeated use of such chemicals has resulted in the emergence of insect strains resistant to them, Mr. Thomas added.

New and selective methods of insect control should be designed by exploring and exploiting the biochemical and physiological processes that are unique to insects, he said.

Most of the critical physiological processes involved in morphogensis, reproduction and behaviour of insects are regulated by hormones.

The involvement of hormones in various aspects of insect physiology is one of the promising areas for the development of chemical analogues for insect control. Certain growth regulators and anti-hormones based on the concept have already been developed, Mr. Thomas said. This approach is of great value in integrated pest management programmes as these compounds are non-persistent, biodegradable and more specific than conventional broad-spectrum insecticides. As many as 80 delegates are expected to participate in the seminar. Eminent scientists and experts in field would present papers on the importance of insect growth regulators and trends in insect pest management, said Mr. Thomas.

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