India: Onion crop hit by disease
Speaking to reporters here on Saturday, he said onion was one of the major crops in the district and this year it is being cultivated on 16,000 hectares with a minimum yield of 240,000 tonnes.
The officials of the department have noticed that the crop in some parts of the district has been affected by the downy mildew disease which spreads fast in clod climatic conditions. “Since the disease spreads very fast, farmers should take all precautionary measures to control it,” he said.
There are also reports that onion crop in some other parts of the district was suffering from blast disease, commonly known as ‘benki roga’, and the officers of the horticulture department at all taluk levels have been instructed to guide farmers in the right direction to control the spread of the disease and protect the crop.
He said the horticulture department would not give any fertilizer to control the disease and farmers would have to purchase the required products on their own. The officials would guide them on how to use the fertilizers and protect the crop from the disease. The farmers should contact horticulture department officials or Raitha Samparka Kendra for further information, he added.
Source: thehindu.com