webinar on “Biotechnological approaches in forest insect pest and diseases management

A webinar on “Biotechnological approaches in forest insect pest and diseases management” was organized by Forest Protection Division, FRI, Dehradun. DG, ICFRE, Sh. A.S. Rawat has inaugurated the webinar on 11 October 2021. In this webinar a talk was delivered by Dr. O.N. Tewari, Principal Scientist, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi on Conservation and utilization of cyanobacteria. He emphasized that in recent years, cyanobacteria gained immense interest in biotechnology and has been considered as a very promising source of alternative energy. Further, cyanobacteria have been identified as a rich source of biologically active compounds. Interestingly, filamentous cyanobacteria have the ability to differentiate specialized cells, named heterocysts, involved in nitrogen fixation. Additionally Dr. K.S. Sangha, Principal Entomologist, Department of Agroforestry, Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana, Punjab has delivered a talk on Biological Control of Forestry Insect pest. He discussed on different aspects of biological control of insect pest and emphasized on promotion of entomophagy park, ecological engineering for the promotion of natural enemies, application and importance of semiochemicals, habitat management, chemical ecology for natural enemies. He has also emphasized the role, application and future possibilities of endosymbionts and endophytes for insect pest management. In this webinar Dr. Amit Pandey, Dr. Sudhir, Dr. Arun Pratap Singh, Dr. Ranjeet Singh, Dr. Vipin Prakash, Dr. Arvind, Dr. KP Singh, Dr. Shailesh, Dr. Ranjana were presented from FRI, Dehradun along with more than hundred participants throughout the country.