About Us

Realizing the yield losses inflicted and seriousness of white grubs problem in several agricultural crops, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research started the “All India Coordinated Research Project on white-grubs” in 1982. In EFC Meeting held during 2014, the name of the project changed to “All India Network Project on Soil Arthropod Pests". With new aspiration and drive to coordinate location-specific research on soil arthropod pests management, now the project with sanctioned strength of small numbers of scientists to undertake the research work over a larger agro-ecological area three volunteer centres, Almora (Uttarakhand), Ghaziabad (Uttar Pradesh) and Kolhapur (Maharashtra) are included besides the main centres viz., RARI, Durgapura (Rajasthan), AAU, Jorhat (Assam), UAS, Bengaluru (Karnataka), CSK HPKV, Palampur (Himachal Pradesh) and JAU, Junagadh (Gujarat).

Mandate

To develop simple, economical, safe and practical integrated technology for the management of white grubs and other soil arthropod pests under different agro climatic conditions and cropping systems in Pan India.

Mission

• Serving as the nodal agency for the pilot survey of soil arthropod pests in different crops and applying of an effective “Integrated Approach” for their management
• Isolating and identifying biocontrol agents from different climatic zones of the country; evaluating of their efficacy against soil arthropod pests viz., white grub, termites and cutworms
• Coordinating research on soil arthropod pests at the national level
• Disseminating information and impart training on soil arthropod pests management

Organogram

Thrust Areas

• Isolation of pheromone from major species of white grubs that causing damage to different crops is prerequisite. Preparation of Nano-based pheromone septa is needed.
• The bioagents were effective in the laboratory as well as in field condition. There is need to search and multiply local isolates of these bio agents, for effective management of these soil arthropod pests.
• Evaluation of efficacy of newer chemical molecules in different crops at different climatic zones of country will help practitioner select less disruptive insecticides through modified application protocols (e.g., crop, timing, areas) against soil arthropod pests.
• New pathogens for biological control will offer safe and IPM compatible alternatives to standard chemistries for soil arthropod pests’ management and may also offer long lasting control. H. indica holds outstanding potential for white grub control, but problems with its in-vivo mass production yet have to be overcome at local level.
• A better understanding of the white grub biology will help us develop better application parameters for recommendations.
• Generation of DNA barcodes and molecular characterization of white grubs in order to assess the nature and extend of genetic diversity present in the scarabaied fauna of India is yet to be done for many species.
• Taxonomic studies to identify specimens of white grub and prepare data base which provide information on taxon status, distribution and host range of white grubs in the country. It’s also a prerequisite for any management strategy. Discovery and documentation of new species or new distributional records is essential.
• The generated technology is not transferred to end users properly by the extension agencies so the scientists of the project are validating the technology on few farmers’ fields so that it is conveyed to adjoining areas and benefit the farmers.
• Lot of research work has been conducted for IPM of soil arthropod pests, particularly on white grub are being used by the farmers but still there is need to give more emphasis on dissemination of generated technologies to end user through “Mass Training Programmes/capacity building” following AAU, Jorhat Assam centre.

Objectives

• Development of eco-friendly, bio-intensive integrated management strategies for soil arthropod pests, white grubs, termite, cutworms, wireworms, field cricket, mole cricket, root bugs, red ants, snails slugs, etc.
• Identification of local isolates of virulent host-specific pathogens (Entomopathogenic bacteria, fungi, virus and nematodes) for the management of soil arthropod pests.
• Isolation and identification of pheromones of key phytophagous white grub spp. (other than Holotrichia consanguinea, Lepidiota mansueta, Holotrichia seticollis) of different agro-ecological zones.
• To study the biodiversity, behaviour and crop losses with regard to soil arthropod pests to develop eco-friendly integrated management strategy.

Cadre Strength

Former Project Coordinators

Budget/Financial Allocation

Allocated budget and expenditure during different plan periods

Project Coordinator’s Message

The soil arthropod pests like, white grubs, termites, cutworms, root borer, wireworms, red ants, crickets, and phytophagous snails have become increasingly difficult pests throughout India with their increasing damage every year as evidenced by the several outbreaks that occurred over large areas during the recent past. Almost all field, horticultural and plantation crops are severely affected from this group of pests and sometimes, cause 100% of crop damage compelling farmers for uprooting of the crop.

The ICAR-AINP on Soil Arthropod Pests was launched in 1983 to conduct research for formulating long term and short-term strategies of management of soil arthropod pests. The major emphasis under this project has been given to find out solutions for the management of soil arthropod pests by using label claim pesticides. However, in the recent past, it has been realized that the chemical control of soil arthropod pests has been becoming ineffective due to development of resistance in target pests and other factors related to pest behaviour. Therefore, the other options for the management of soil arthropods pests are being explored under the project for the last few years, by integrating host trees spraying and using light traps and pheromone traps for beetles’ control and IPM approach including bioagents and botanicals for white grub control.

The bioagents are emerging as important tool to find out long term solutions for the management of soil arthropod pests. Application of bio-agents from known sources, native strains of Entomopathogenic Nematodes (EPNs) and Entomopathogenic fungi (EPFs) have been found to be very effective in IPM approach for the management of soil arthropod pests. The Scientific team of AINP ON SAP has made remarkable progress in development of technologies; isolation, identification and evaluation of native strains of natural enemies of soil arthropod pests. A set up of mass multiplication technology for EPN in Ghaziabad centre and for EPF in Bengaluru centre is developed and a wide range of management strategies (cultural, microbial and pheromonal etc.) have already realised in the project and to be adopted for managing them in view of their damage potential, cryptic life style (as they are underground most of the time) and much-to-be understood biology. That’s why this project is both economically and ecologically very viable and has a separate identity because no other institute or organisation is engaged in such type of research in India.

Social engineering now include a wider range of communication and learning activities are being organized for rural people by scientific team from different disciplines of agriculture. The application of scientific research on soil arthropod pest management and new knowledge to agricultural practices through farmer education carried out by each centre of AINP ON SAP throughout the year. AINP ON SAP scientific team organizes meeting with NGO’s, SHGs for the transfer of proven technologies to the farmers’ field and other stakeholders throughout the year, and thousands of beneficiaries benefitted from them.

In the Public-private partnership (PPP) mode, AINP-SAP takes up industry sponsored trials for generation of crop loss data due to soil arthropod pests. As a part of human resource and skill development initiative, AINP-SAP conducts refresher training programmes on soil arthropod pests management for project scientists and other researchers from across the country. Early advisory and awareness is issued for soil arthropod pests management among the farmers and the general public through participation in Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), Krishi Vigyan Melas, Mera Gaon Mera Gaurav (MGMG) and the media.

I wish to thank Dr. Himanshu Pathak, Secretary (DARE) and Director General (ICAR), Dr. T. R. Sharma, DDG (Crop Science), and Dr. S. C. Dubey, ADG (PP&B) for their guidance and support. I am also grateful to all the scientists and staff members associated with the project from across the country for their valuable contribution to the project. I hope information on soil arthropod pests made available in the project website will be of immense help to the researchers and the farmers’ community facing the problem of soil arthropod pests’ infestation in different crops and different climatic zones of pan India.

Dr. Arjun Singh Baloda
Network Coordinator
AINP on Soil Arthropod Pests
ICAR-RARI, Durgapura, Jaipur