DROUGHT conditions triggered a pest attack in 12 paddy growing districts of Orissa. The swarming caterpillars (Spodoptera mauritia) ruined crops on 89,000 hectares (ha) of the four million ha under paddy cultivation in the state. Sambalpur district was the worst affected; paddy crops on nearly 33,000 ha were destroyed by the pest, called leda poka in Orissa. In Malkangiri district,

VIEW FINDER NOT A USUAL EXERCISE Soldiers smell the ground to detect bodies of flash flood victims in Taiwan after Typhoon Morakot battered the island"s southern region in the second week of August. The typhoon, which Met officials call the deadliest in 50 years, also triggered mudslides; one such mudslide

Chandigarh ConcretiSation in the city is having an adverse affect on trees.

With a large number of trees increasingly being surrounded by concrete, the average life of a tree is reducing.

Union Minion of State for Agriculture K V Thomas had summoned the representatives of coffee growers to New Delhi to discuss the problems of growers recently.

Interacting with the delegation, he said that Central Government wants to respond to their problems in an effective manner and even plans to find suitable solution for yellow leaf disease affecting arecanut and erosion of fertile soil.

Farmers have demanded of the Punjab government to declare the district a calamity-hit area due to the heavy damages caused to the cotton crop by recent massive virus attack.

KOZHIKODE: By driving in two rusted nails at the base of each tree, a Kerala farmer has managed to save his arecanut trees from a fungal infection that causes leaves to turn yellow and kills the tree. While T Benny

Over 3000 acres of coconut grooves along Birur-Lingadalli road in Kadur taluk have been infested by the black headed caterpillar.

Pakistan is seeking a regional action plan to combat the wheat stem rust (UG99) virus that has caused serious damage to wheat crops in many counties.

UG99 originated in Uganda in 1999 and has migrated to many countries.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today said the state government had decided to cover maize, bajra, cotton and arhar under the National Insurance Agriculture Scheme in the state during kharif-2009.

He said the decision had been taken keeping in view the drought-like situation in the state.