Since 1973, when Rice Brown Plant hopper (BPH) started damaging vast
stretches of rice growing tracts in all tropical rice growing countries of
Asia, it is painful to observe the pathetic condition of the rice farmers
standing on bunds and watching helplessly while their rice crop is drying
and dying just before their eyes due to BPH damage. Secondly, every
attempt that the farmer makes to boost his rice yields like planting better
tillering varieties, applying more fertilizer, maintaining better water level
in the field, all are only aggravating the BPH problem by enhancing its
reproductive potential and multiplication rate. This is more severe in
Kharif or rainy season which is the major rice growing period in the entire
tropical rice growing world. BPH problem is further enhanced due to
wrong usage of insecticides by the farmer in his anxiety to control the pest
in a short span of time.
There were two international symposia on BPH, the first one in 1978
“Brown Plant hopper- A Threat To Rice Production In Asia” and the
second one in 2008 “Plant hoppers: new threats to the sustainability of
intensive rice production systems in Asia” organized by International Rice
Research Institute, Philippines (IRRI) and the proceedings of both were
published during subsequent years and are available on internet. A number
of research papers were also published on several aspects of BPH and its
management since 1973. Still there are many aspects where the scientific
community needs better understanding and clarity and rice farmers need
to improve their quality of thinking on the problem of BPH management.
Hence, this book is designed to meet these two important objectives. The
whole of the information is divided into 14 chapters having both the basic
as well as applied aspects on various management strategies. Every attempt
was made to quote the original source whenever, any information from the
literature is used. If at all there are any omissions it is never intentional and the
concerned persons are requested to sympathetically understand this point.
Preface
