Area Wide Implementation of Insecticide Resistance Management Strategies on bt Cotton - A Case Study in India

Insecticide Resistance Management strategies have been formulated with several cost effective, ecofriendly novel approaches and rotation of insecticides based on resistance data for managing the pest complex for stabilizing the cotton ecosystem and improving the social economic status of the cotton growers. Insecticide Resistance Management (IRM) strategies for managing cotton pest complex revealed that sucking and bollworm complex was lower in IRM fields compared to non IRM fields. The strategic positioning of insecticides coupled with ecofriendly technologies led to abundance of natural enemies in cotton ecosystem in IRM fields, while the incidence of these insects was lower in non IRM fields due to insecticidal sprays. Farmers by adopting IRM strategies realized higher net returns by saving in plant protection cost due to less number of insecticidal sprays and increased seed cotton yield.