New Delhi, October 1 (IANS). Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Food Corporation of India (FCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to research alternative fumigation technologies for safe and sustainable management of storage pests of wheat and rice. The government believes that this initiative will play an important role in making the country's food grain storage system more safe, effective and environment-friendly.

According to the official statement, chemicals like Aluminum Phosphide (ALP) and Malathion have been used mainly for pest control during storage of wheat and rice in India for a long time. However, the continuous and widespread use of these chemicals has posed many serious challenges.

According to experts, 72 to 100 percent resistance to these chemicals has developed among storage pests in many major states. Due to this, frequent fumigation has to be done, due to which the cost is increasing. The use of these chemicals also poses risks to the health of workers and can have long-term negative effects on the environment.

The new initiative aims to address these challenges. Under this, work will be done to standardize technologies like nitrogen gas, carbon dioxide (CO2) and combined use of CO2 and phosphine at the commercial level.

Three major trials will be conducted in the first phase (Phase-I) of the project. These include trial of more than 99 per cent pure nitrogen gas fumigation for wheat stored in metal silos, combined use of carbon dioxide and phosphine gas for bagged wheat and rice in FCI and Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) warehouses and trial of carbon dioxide-based fumigation for grains stored in hermetic covers.

After the pilot phase lasting two years, in the second phase (Phase-II), multi-location trials will be conducted for one year in different agro-climatic zones of the country. Based on this, area wise Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) will be prepared.

The statement said the initiative aims to develop scientific, practical and sustainable alternatives to traditional chemical fumigation that can reduce problems such as pest resistance, health risks, environmental impacts and chemical residues.

This research project will be conducted in collaboration with the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD), Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. The first phase of the project will be implemented by ICAR-Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET), Ludhiana.

–IANS

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