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A groundbreaking pilot project by the Central Institute for Cotton Research (CICR) under the ICAR uses AI for real-time monitoring and timely interventions to reduce economic losses from the devastating pest Pink Bollworm.

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• Cotton farmers have long battled the relentless pink bollworm (PBW), a pest that devastates cotton crops by destroying parts of the developing fruit like the square and boll. 
• In recent years, even genetically modified Bt cotton has succumbed to this pest, causing significant economic losses.
• Under the pilot project, AI-powered pheromone traps are deployed for real-time pest monitoring.
• This initiative marks a first in India, pioneering the use of AI for pest control in any crop. 
• The pilot programme for pest control is being implemented in three major cotton-growing districts in Punjab: Muktsar, Bhatinda, and Mansa. 
• Six fields from each district, totaling 18 fields, have been selected for the project. If successful, the project will be expanded to Rajasthan and Haryana, offering a scalable solution to a widespread problem. 

Working of the new AI-powered technology

• Pheromone traps, which contain the pheromone gossyplure, a chemical emitted by female moths to attract male moths, have been used to reduce crop pests. 
• Farmers typically install five pheromone traps per hectare and monitor the activity of male moths to determine if it exceeds the economic threshold level (ETL).
  ETL is the insect population level or the extent of crop damage at which the crop value exceeds the cost of pest control.
• However, manually monitoring these traps can be time-consuming and challenging, especially for farmers managing expansive fields.
• The new technology utilizes AI-powered pheromone traps equipped with cameras for real-time pest monitoring. These high-tech traps capture images of moths attracted to the pheromones at regular intervals. 
• In the new digital approach, the farmer receives hourly crop updates via his mobile phone, thus enabling timely pest management advice, ensuring efficient control and keeping damage below economic threshold levels. 

Benefits for Farmers

• Early Warning System: Real-time pest data allows farmers to take timely action to control PBW populations before significant damage occurs. 
• Improved Decision-Making: Equipped with accurate data, farmers can make informed decisions about pesticide application, reducing unnecessary use and environmental impact.
• Increased Efficiency: AI-powered traps free up valuable time for farmers, allowing them to focus on other crucial aspects of crop management. With this AI-powered system, farmers can monitor their crops remotely.

Pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella)

• • The insect is commonly known as a pest in cotton farming. The adult is a small, thin, gray moth with fringed wings. The larva is a dull white caterpillar with eight pairs of legs and conspicuous pink banding along its back. The larva can grow up to half an inch in length.
• • The female moth lays eggs in a cotton boll. When the larvae hatch from the eggs, they cause damage by feeding. They chew through the cotton lint to feed on the seeds. 

About Bt-Cotton

• Bt cotton was introduced in India in 2002, following its successful deployment in the United States and Australia in 1996. 
• This genetically modified variety of cotton, encoded with the Cry1Ac toxin from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), was designed to protect crops from various bollworms, including the American, spotted, and pink bollworms.
• Bt cotton was initially highly effective. It significantly reduced the damage caused by bollworms, leading to increased yields and reduced pesticide usage. 
• In 2008, scientists observed unusual survival rates of pink bollworms in Gujarat's Amreli district, signalling the pest's growing resistance to the Cry1Ac gene. 
• The first major outbreak of pink bollworm infestation was reported in Gujarat in 2015. This was soon followed by a widespread infestation in Maharashtra and the southern states during 2017-18. 
• By 2018-19, the pest had also become resistant to Bollgard II, a newer version of Bt cotton, in Haryana.