Dear IWSS Colleagues,

Attached please find an updated version of the Second Circular of the
5th International Weed Science Congress to be held in Vancouver 2008.
In this version we have incorporated some minor corrections. We
cordially invite you to share this circular with colleagues and
potential Congress participants.

Best regards,

Albert J. Fischer

IWSS Secretary-Treasurer

Dept. of Plant Sciences

Mail Stop 4

University of California

One Shields Ave.

Davis, CA 95616-8780

Phone:(530) 752-7386

Fax: (530) 752-4606

ajfischer@ucdavis.edu

http://iws.ucdavis.edu/

Dear IWSS Colleagues,



Attached please find an updated version of the Second Circular of the
5th International Weed Science Congress to be held in Vancouver 2008.
In this version we have incorporated some minor corrections.  We
cordially invite you to share this circular with colleagues and
potential Congress participants.



Best regards,



Albert J. Fischer

IWSS Secretary-Treasurer

Dept. of Plant Sciences

Mail Stop 4

University of California

One Shields Ave.

Davis, CA 95616-8780

Phone:(530) 752-7386

Fax: (530) 752-4606

ajfischer@...

http://iws.ucdavis.edu/

LETTER TO EDITOR

Year : 2007  |  Volume : 73  |  Issue : 4  |  Page : 265

Type I hypersensitivity to Parthenium hysterophorus in patients with
parthenium dermatitis

Verma Kaushal K
  Department of Dermatology & Venereology, All India Institute of
Medical Sciences, New Delhi - 110 029, India

Correspondence Address:
Verma Kaushal K
Department of Dermatology & Venereology, All India Institute of
Medical Sciences, New Delhi-110029
India
prokverma@...

Sir,

I read with interest the article by Lakshmi et al. [1] In this article
the authors have suggested that both type I hypersensitivity and type
IV hypersensitivity are responsible for dermatitis in parthenium
dermatitis patients, and they have tried to demonstrate this by doing
prick test and serum IgE levels in these patients. The majority of
their patients were atopics. It is well known that atopic individuals
are more susceptible to develop allergic response to various antigenic
stimuli and have elevated IgE levels. [2] Immunologic abnormalities of
type I and type IV reactions have been described in patients with
atopic dermatitis. [3] Immunologic triggers are aeroallergens, food
allergens, microbial products, autoallergens and contact allergens.
They enhance IgE production by B lymphocytes with an increased
secretion of interleukin 4, interleukin 5 and interleukin 13. [2]

Atopics are a more susceptible to develop contact allergy to
compositae plants also. [4],[5] In this study, it seems atopic
individuals have developed parthenium dermatitis and this atopic state
may have resulted in positive prick test and elevated IgE levels in
these patients, which may not have been actually due to parthenium.
The situation may have been different in non-atopic parthenium
dermatitis patients. Therefore, positive prick test and elevated IgE
levels in their patients do not conclusively prove that these were due
to parthenium only and not because of some other stimuli. Hence a
credible evidence of type I hypersensitivity due to Parthenium
hysterophorus is lacking in this study. I dare to suggest that the
authors should have demonstrated 'Parthenium hysterophorus' -specific
IgE by using methods like ELISA to confirm the presence of these IgE
antibodies due to Parthenium hysterophorus antigen to suggest the role
of type I hypersensitivity in this disease.


   References   Top

1. Lakshmi C, Srinivas CR. Type I hypersensitivity to parthenium
hysterophorus in patients with parthenium dermatitis. Indian J
Dermatol Venereol Leprol 2007;73:103-5.  Back to cited text no. 1
2. Pastar Z, Lipozencic J, Ljubojevic S. Etiopathogenesis of atopic
dermatitis: An overview. Acta Dermatovenerol Croat 2005;13:54-62.
Back to cited text no. 2
3. Wollenberg A, Kraft S, Oppel T, Bieber T. Atopic dermatitis:
pathogenetic mechanisms. Clin Exp Dermatol 2000;25:530-4.  Back to
cited text no. 3  [PUBMED]  [FULLTEXT]
4. Jovanovic M, Poljacki M, Duran V, Vujanovic L, Sente R, Stojanovic
S. Contact allergy to Compositae plants in patients with atopic
dermatitis. Med Pregl 2004;57:209-18.  Back to cited text no. 4
5. Nettis E, Giordano D, Soccio A, Ferrannini A, Tursi A. Frequency of
contact allergy to composite extracts in patients with atopic
dermatitis. Contact Dermatitis 2002;47:169-70.  Back to cited text no.
5  [PUBMED]  [FULLTEXT]

http://www.ijdvl.com/article.asp?issn=0378-6323;year=2007;volume=73;issue=4;spag\
e=265;epage=265;aulast=Verma

Salam to everybody,

I am interested to have few seeds of Parthenium hysterophorus for laboratory purpose research work. If anybody got few seeds, please contact to arrange for sending and definitely I appreciate in advance your cooperation.

Best Regards,

Abu Abdallah

Insect Vectors of Plant Pathogens Lab.

Agricultural Research Center,

Sultanate of Oman

---

From: IPRNG@yahoogroups.co.in [mailto:IPRNG@yahoogroups.co.in]
Sent: 25 July 2007 2:20 PM
To: IPRNG@yahoogroups.co.in
Subject: [IPRNG] New file uploaded to IPRNG

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
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Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
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Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the IPRNG
group.

   File        : /phytochemistry.htm
   Uploaded by : pankajoudhia <pankajoudhia@...>
   Description : VI Symposium International on Natural Products Chemistry and its
Application, Chile 2007

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Hello,

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Dear Group Members,
You are requested to send your messages only in *English* as it
is official language of this group.

regards
IPRNG Moderator

Dear Group Members,
      You are requested to send your messages only in *English* as it
is official language of this group.

regards
IPRNG Moderator

Xanthium strumarium has been reported to cross react
with P in India .Our former series included X,P and
crysanthimum.
Srinivas
Dermatologist
--- Pablo Morales <pablomoralesupr@...> wrote:

> Hello everyone!
>
>   I have been searching the literature on the plant
> Eryngium foetidum (it has so many common names that
> I will keep it at the latin binomial) for a paper I
> am writing on the competition between that plants
> and Parthenium. In some documents Eryngium foetidum
> comes up as a crop (culinary herb, medicinal plant),
> in others as a weed.
>   Could some of you share information on the status
> of Eryngium foetidum in your region, or if you have
> knowledge of published documents or unpublished
> research regarding that plant. Is it a crop or a
> weed in your region? How important is it? Is it
> associated with Parthenium? Any information you can
> provide will be deeply appreciated.
>   Dr. J. Pablo Morales
>   University of Puerto Rico
>
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> Looking for a deal? Find great prices on flights and
> hotels with Yahoo! FareChase.




________________________________________________________________________________\
____
Need a vacation? Get great deals
to amazing places on Yahoo! Travel.
http://travel.yahoo.com/

Dear Pablo,

in Mexico it is both - widely cultivated/tolerated in
home gardens, occasionally traded, and a wildgrowing
weed. Have a look at the webpage
http://www.conabio.gob.mx/malezasdemexico/apiaceae/eryngium-foetidum/fichas/fich\
a.htm
in the Weeds of Mexico website
(www.malezasdemexico.net).

The species certainly grows in some of the same
regions as Parthenium hysterophorus, but I have not
noted a particular association; my impression is that
it is restricted more or less to humid tropical areas,
whereas Parthenium may also occur in the dry tropics
and subtropics.

Regards,

Heike Vibrans



> Hello everyone!
>
>   I have been searching the literature on the plant
> Eryngium foetidum (it has so many common names that
> I will keep it at the latin binomial) for a paper I
> am writing on the competition between that plants
> and Parthenium. In some documents Eryngium foetidum
> comes up as a crop (culinary herb, medicinal plant),
> in others as a weed.
>   Could some of you share information on the status
> of Eryngium foetidum in your region, or if you have
> knowledge of published documents or unpublished
> research regarding that plant. Is it a crop or a
> weed in your region? How important is it? Is it
> associated with Parthenium? Any information you can
> provide will be deeply appreciated.
>   Dr. J. Pablo Morales
>   University of Puerto Rico



----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dra. Heike Vibrans L.
Laboratorio de Etnobotánica
Programa de Botánica
Colegio de Postgraduados en Ciencias Agrícolas
km 35.5 carr. México-Texcoco
56230 Montecillo
Estado de México, Mexico

Tel. +52 (595) 95 20 200 Ext. 1335 (directo), 1330 (dirección)
Fax. +52 (595) 95 20 247
Correo electrónico: heike@... (trabajo), heike_texcoco@...

Página web: http://www.malezasdemexico.net
http://www.colpos.mx/IRENAT/bot/HeikeVibransLindemann.htm
-----------------------------------------------------------------------


      
________________________________________________________________________________\
____
¡Sé un mejor fotógrafo!
Perfecciona tu técnica y encuentra las mejores fotos.
http://mx.yahoo.com/promos/mejorfotografo.html

Predictably much of this was baffling for my mother, who could never
figure reasons behind strange phenomena, like a missing lunch box or
sudden body rashes (from playing with Parthenium grass) . Though she
was clever enough to figure that “I� was involved in some way or the
other.

http://qtol.wordpress.com/2007/07/24/the-pencil-that-wouldnt-grow/

__________________________________________________
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US passes wheat weed buck to India
Surinder Sud / New Delhi July 19, 2007
The US today sought to lend a fresh twist to the controversy over the
permissible weed content in imported wheat by claiming that the
pervasive weed had not come to India through the US wheat imported in
the 1950s but was present in the country even earlier.

India had been justifying its stringent grain purity norms for wheat
imports on the plea that it cannot risk the induction of fresh weeds
into the country.

This has virtually barred the US from exporting wheat to India as its
grains are unable to meet Indian standards. The US has been disputing
these standards and pressing India to liberalise its norms to allow
wheat import from the US.

US embassy spokesperson Larry Schwartz today stated that documented
reports published in 1888 by Dr D Brandis of the Dehradun-based Forest
Research Institute and by other researchers in 1914 observed the
presence of these invasive weeds in India.

He, therefore, refuted Indian researchers claim that the US wheat
imported to India in the 1950s as part of the PL-480 Food for Peace
programme had brought invasive �Congress grass� (Parthenium
hysterophorus) weed to this country.

Schwartz said, �We call on Indian officials to disregard baseless
allegations for keeping American wheat out of this market.� He also
reiterated the US stand that Indian consumers would be paying 10 to 20
per cent less if American wheat was purchased by the Centre.

Last week, US Ambassador Mulford had urged the Indian government to
conduct independent tests of imported wheat arriving at Indian ports
to verify that its standards are being met.

A statement issued on July 10 by the US embassy in New Delhi had
sought to even question India�s import inspection process, besides the
phyto-sanitary requirements stipulated by it.

�India�s very low weed seed standard is nearly impossible for any
global exporter to meet, raising questions about the reliability of
India�s import inspection process. The US calls upon the government of
India to conduct independent tests on imported wheat arriving in
Indian ports to verify that these standards are truly being met,� the
statement had said.

Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar has ruled out any relaxation in the
weed standards for wheat imports to avert introduction of any new weed
into the country. The US is keen to export wheat to India as the
government has already announced that it intended to import 5 million
tonnes of wheat this year.

Ironically, the STC has already accepted bids for import of 5.11 lakh
tonnes of wheat at prices ranging between $317 and $330 per tonne.

http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage.php?autono=291662&leftnm=3&sub\
Left=0&chkFlg=

Dear Pankaj Oudhia: Pl. update your web on our activities. We are no
more at New Delhi address:  M-120 Greater kailash-1,  New Delhi 110
048.  We have shifted from there  8 years ago.

This year due to favourable  climate condition at the foothill of
Himalaya,  Parthenium has spread at an epidemic scale.  Last year we
thought we had almsot erradicated it from our area.  But it has sprung
jwith vigour alaround us.  We have launched ani-Parthenium campaign by
uprooting it by hand.  As it is rainy season due to wet soil it is
easy to uproot it. But the plant is flowering and in forest and farm
land it has grown to 2-3' still the flower is not ripe.

Pl. update us on enviorn-friendly method to stop its growth in the
Himalayan region.   Fraternalg reetings,  Dr. Dhirendra Sharma
Centre Science Policy Research, "Nirmal-Nilay", Dehradun 248009.
+(0135) 2735 627.
www.psaindia.org

Lake Victorious: weevils defeat water hyacinths
Michael Malakata
11 July 2007
Source: SciDev.Net

Scientists have announced the success of a biological, pesticide-
free method in eradicating the highly invasive water hyacinth from
Africa's waterways.

James Ogwang, an entomologist specialising in biological control at
the Ugandan National Agriculture Research Organisation, and his
colleagues presented their work at the annual meeting of the
American Society of Plant Biologists last week (8 July) in Chicago,
United States.

The scientists' control strategy involves mechanical removal of the
plants, and harnessing two natural enemies of the water hyacinth â€"
the weed weevils Neochetina bruchi and Neochetina eichhorniae. Using
this method, the scientists successfully eradicated 90 per cent of
the water hyacinth in Africa's Lake Victoria.

The water hyacinth plants that proliferated around Lake Victoria
throughout the 1990s resulted a decrease in the lake's biodiversity,
said Ogwang in a press release. They also disrupted activities on
the lake: fishermen caught less fish, the plants interfered with
water transport and blocked hydroelectric power turbines, which
resulted in a severe drop in the supply of electricity.

The 'mats' of water hyacinth are also a threat to human health; they
provide a habitat for insects carrying malaria and schistosomiasis,
and rotting hyacinths contaminate drinking water, causing
gastrointestinal disease.

Both the adult and larval weed weevils eat water hyacinth and, by
tunnelling into the plant, allow bacteria and fungi to invade the
plant. Water also enters these tunnels, sinking the mats. Once
submerged, water and wave action continue to degrade the plant
matter.
The control strategy resulted in reduced cases of disease, increased
power generation and larger catches of fish for export. And because
pesticide was not used, the process is a cheaper and more
sustainable way of removing the weeds.

Amon Mwape, an environmental scientist from the Zambian Ministry of
Tourism, Environment and Natural Resources says water hyacinths are
invading most of Africa's rivers, and they are a big challenge.
"It is a good effort by the scientists to come up with a natural and
less expensive way of controlling the weeds," he said.
But he also warned of the dangers of introducing new, non-native
species into the environment.

"The scientists must be cautious that these insects do not cause
damage to other plant species," said Mwape.

Water hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes, is one of the most invasive
waterweeds in the world, and was first observed in Lake Victoria in
1989.

The biological method of water hyacinth control used in Lake
Victoria was originally implemented in Florida, United States, in
the 1970s.

US wheat not fit to be imported: Report
16 Jul 2007, 0157 hrs IST,Nitin Sethi,TNN

NEW DELHI: A crucial report concluding that US wheat is not fit to be
imported is being kept under wraps by a government that doesn't want
to annoy the Americans at a time of blossoming bilateral ties despite
the stalemated nuclear deal.

The report, prepared by a team of Indian officials visiting the US in
May 2007, has recorded the presence of 19 invasive weeds that Indian
regulations consider dangerous and require quarantine. Another two
that India still has not verified for their ability to cause harm have
also been found to be associated with US wheat. It has also recorded
leakages in the processing of wheat that allows the weeds to escape in
the consignments.

The report, which TOI got access to from government records, makes it
clear why the US administration is putting up such a shrill campaign
for lowering the conditions that currently disqualify US wheat from
import.

The finding marks a setback to US efforts to find a market for its
farmers that grow wheat on 60 million hectares and export almost half
of the produce. With India showing interest in importing 3-5 million
tonnes of wheat this year, US looks upon it as a loss of a big
business opportunity. Last year too, the US was unable to export its
wheat to India because of the tight safety regulations. This year,
however, the US was expecting the tide to change in its favour with a
concerted level of lobbying. But so far India has denied any
possibility of lowering the safety measures in order to allow import
from US.

The report noted that Indian regulations demand that there be less
than 100 quarantine weed seeds in a 200-kg sample whereas US is
demanding that India allow 12,000 quarantined weed seeds per 200 kg of
wheat. The visiting team also found on inspection at the Columbia
Grain Export Facility, US, that "a lot of weed seeds, including those
of quarantine, still remain in the final processed product..."

Usually, India has a zero tolerance policy against any weed that is on
the quarantine list but the government modified the rules last year in
order to import wheat and allowed 100 weed seeds per 200 kg as an
exception, keeping national food security in mind.

But food-security issues are raked up by the history of contaminated
imports as well that earlier hit Indian economy and agriculture quite
hard. Phalaris minor or canary grass, which is known to cause 15-50%
yield losses in Indian wheat, was introduced in 1961 from Mexico
through contaminated foodgrain. Back-of-the-envelope estimates suggest
that in Punjab and Haryana alone, the economic losses because of the
weed run into Rs 3,700 crore annually.

Another weed, Parthenium Hysteophorus, also introduced to India with
import of contaminated wheat import, is today spread over 7-8 million
hectares of non-cropped area and estimates show could take up to Rs
1,600 crore to control.

India has also suggested to US to undertake adequate cleaning as a
mitigation measure by which it can comply with Indian standards. The
expert team noted that there was considerable potential to reduce weed
content in the US wheat but the Americans have shown reluctance at the
moment.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/US_wheat_not_fit_to_be_imported_Report/articl\
eshow/2205708.cms

Thanks for your message. I am hoping that group members will come
forward with their ideas on Third International Conference on
Parthenium.

As you know I am documenting traditional medicinal knowledge about
herbs and insects. At present I am compiling traditional knowledge
about Diabetes. This long report will be over up to April, 2009.
Please visit this link to see list of weekly schedules for Diabetic
patients that are important part of this report. http://ecoport.org/ep?SearchType=interactiveTableList&Title=diabetes&TitleWild=CO

(If unable to open this link, please copy and paste this url. It
will take 5-7 minutes to open even in fastest net connection). Keep
visiting this link, if you are interested, as new schedules are
added daily.

For this reason it seems difficult to organise the conference at
Raipur this time but I will give my full support to the organisers.

regards
Pankaj Oudhia

--- In IPRNG@yahoogroups.co.in, "Dr. M. Mahadevappa"
<mahadevrice@...> wrote:
>
> Dear Pankaj,
>
> Thanks. It is useful.
>
> Will you please inform all our group members if any organization
is willing to hold the #rd International Conference on Parthenium? I
can myself organize it in Karnataka but it should not confine only
to Karnataka. If some organization comes forward, I can help support
from various sources like DBT. etc. Why not in Raipur?
> Please explore. If none comes forth, we will have it in Mysore.
Now, in Mysore & Chamarajanagar districts, Cassia has taken over
where ever there was some effort made by some local bodies.
>
> Regs,
> M Mahadevappa
>
> Pankaj Oudhia <pankajoudhia@...> wrote:
> From Enviroweeds mailing list
>
> WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED
>
> Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management
> Media Release
>
> 11 July 2007
>
> WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED
>
> One of the best laws in the Western world on ecological
protection,
> Australia's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation
Act
> (1999), is not being used when it comes to the widespread threat
> posed to the environment by foreign plants, according to Dr Rachel
> McFadyen, CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Australian
Weed
> Management.
>
> Speaking at the Biodiversity Extinction Crisis Conference in
Sydney
> today, Dr McFadyen said that the EPBC Act allowed action once
a 'key
> threatening process' had been identified and declared. Examples of
> official recognition so far included the rabbit, fox, goat, feral
> cats, the root rot-fungus phytophthera, long-line fishing, climate
> change and cane toads.
>
> However, not a single invasive plant had been listed as posing a
> significant threat, Dr McFadyen said.
>
> 'Yet we have plants from Central America forming one-species
stands
> over thousands of hectares, totally displacing the native flora
and
> fauna. Mimosa even prevents indigenous people from accessing their
> country, and Kakadu National Park spends $0.5 million every year
> just to keep it out, they see it as such a threat', she said.
>
> Mesquite, olive hymenachne, lantana, blackberry and bitou bush are
> all recognised as Weeds of National Significance under other
federal
> measures. All are very clearly rampant invaders of valuable
natural
> ecosystems, but none are listed under the EPBC Act, Dr McFadyen
> said.
>
> 'One of the worst offenders is the African gamba grass, still
being
> promoted and planted as pasture for cattle in the north', Dr
> McFadyen said.
>
> 'This is a monster of a grass that can grow over four metres high.
> It seeds prolifically and invades surrounding woodland savannah
> country - and when it burns the heat is just too much for the
> eucalypts, which die.'
>
> 'The result is goodbye eucalypt woodland with its complex of
> associated plants, birds and other animals, and hello African
> grassland which allows very few of these species a look in', she
> said.
>
> 'It does make me wonder what a foreign plant has to do to get
> attention from conservationists. I sometimes think we are up
against
> a prevailing misinformed mindset that sees all green plants as
> essentially the same - as passive, friendly and just part of
> nature.'
>
> 'Try telling that to a landowner or park manager battling rubber
> vine, cat's claw creeper, gorse, broom, boneseed, bridal creeper
or
> any of the dozens of highly invasive foreign plants that chew up
> huge amounts of time and money on a daily basis around Australia.'
>
> Dr McFadyen said that recent research was beginning to paint a
> picture of how threatening weeds were to native plants and
animals.
>
> 'There has been a serious underinvestment in this ecological
impact
> research for many years, but we are now starting to get a better
> handle on it. We now know, for example, that weeds are a
significant
> threat to over one third of endangered species nationally,
including
> within 13 World Heritage Areas - and our international
> responsibilities to protect them are very clear', she said.
>
> 'In NSW, where the Weeds CRC commissioned work in 2006, weeds are
> known to be a direct threat to almost half of the threatened
species
> listed for that state. We know, for example, that the habitat of
the
> northern corroboree frog is directly threatened by blackberry
> invasion, and the native rice flower by bitou bush and lantana.'
>
> The lack of research and data for individual species makes it
> difficult to pin-point specific threats with the precision that
> scientists would like, Dr McFadyen said. But we do understand the
> sorts of changes that weeds cause, and how these tend to affect
> local flora and fauna.
>
> 'We know, for example, that nectar-feeding birds such as lorikeets
> will abandon bushland when their food source is displaced by weeds
> that do not produce nectar.'
>
> That's something that's obvious, but there's a lot more going on.'
>
> The reality is that such displacement of native plants, birds and
> other animals is happening quietly on a vast scale across the
> continent, as weeds gradually make their environment less
attractive
> and less supportive, Dr McFadyen said. Climate change will also
add
> real pressure.
>
> 'The really big weakness we have as custodians of this natural
> heritage', Dr McFadyen said, 'is that too often we only address
the
> biodiversity issue at points or times of crisis, when certain
> species are threatened with imminent extinction. That is reflected
> in the language we use', she said.
>
> In the meantime, Dr McFadyen said, we seem to be largely unaware
of
> the immense changes we have caused to this heritage, and which
> continues to degrade wherever weeds get the upper hand.
>
> 'In fact, now that wholesale land clearing has largely stopped,
> weeds constitute the number one threat to biodiversity. This is a
> widely observed phenomenon around the world.'
>
> The end point of this very long-term process of weed invasion is
> hard to predict, but it is not likely to be good news for our
native
> flora and fauna, Dr McFadyen said.
>
> 'We need to understand this much better and plan and act
> accordingly, not carry on as if all green plants are equal. The
> nation is not a Peter Andrews production system.'
>
> Contacts
> Dr Rachel McFadyen, CEO, Weeds CRC, 0409 263
>
> Images and further information
> High resolution weed photos can be downloaded directly from
> www.weeds.crc.org.au/publications/media.html
> Most of the photos on the Weeds CRC's new image gallery are also
> available in high resolution
> www.weeds.crc.org.au/main/image_gallery_index.html Contact Jenny
> Barker - 08 8303 7250 or jennifer.barker@...
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------
---------------
> Dr. M. Mahadevappa
> Advisor, JSS Rural Dev. Foundation. Mysore - 570 004
> Ex-Chairman, ASRB, Ex-Vice Chancellor UAS, Dharwad
> # 1576, 1st Cross, Chandra Layout
> Bangalore - 560 040 , Karnataka, INDIA
> Phone: (080) 23216040
> Email: mahadevrice@...
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> Now that's room service! Choose from over 150,000 hotels
> in 45,000 destinations on Yahoo! Travel to find your fit.
>

Thanks for your message. I am hoping that group members will come
forward with their ideas on Third International Conference on
Parthenium.

As you know I am documenting traditional medicinal knowledge about
herbs and insects. At present I am compiling traditional knowledge
about Diabetes. This long report will be over up to April, 2009.
Please visit this link to see list of weekly schedules for Diabetic
patients that are important part of this report.
http://ecoport.org/ep?SearchType=interactiveTableList&Title=diabetes&TitleWild=C\
O

(If unable to open this link, please copy and paste this url. It
will take 5-7 minutes to open even in fastest net connection). Keep
visiting this link, if you are interested, as new schedules are
added daily.

For this reason it seems difficult to organise the conference at
Raipur this time but I will give my full support to the organisers.

regards
Pankaj Oudhia

--- In IPRNG@..., "Dr. M. Mahadevappa"
<mahadevrice@...> wrote:
>
> Dear Pankaj,
>
>   Thanks. It is useful.
>
>   Will you please inform all our group members if any organization
is willing to hold the #rd International Conference on Parthenium? I
can myself organize it in Karnataka but it should not confine only
to Karnataka. If some organization comes forward, I can help support
from various sources like DBT. etc. Why not in Raipur?
>   Please explore. If none comes forth, we will have it in Mysore.
Now, in Mysore & Chamarajanagar districts, Cassia has taken over
where ever there was some effort made by some local bodies.
>
>   Regs,
>   M Mahadevappa
>
> Pankaj Oudhia <pankajoudhia@...> wrote:
>           From Enviroweeds mailing list
>
> WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED
>
> Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management
> Media Release
>
> 11 July 2007
>
> WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED
>
> One of the best laws in the Western world on ecological
protection,
> Australia's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation
Act
> (1999), is not being used when it comes to the widespread threat
> posed to the environment by foreign plants, according to Dr Rachel
> McFadyen, CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Australian
Weed
> Management.
>
> Speaking at the Biodiversity Extinction Crisis Conference in
Sydney
> today, Dr McFadyen said that the EPBC Act allowed action once
a 'key
> threatening process' had been identified and declared. Examples of
> official recognition so far included the rabbit, fox, goat, feral
> cats, the root rot-fungus phytophthera, long-line fishing, climate
> change and cane toads.
>
> However, not a single invasive plant had been listed as posing a
> significant threat, Dr McFadyen said.
>
> 'Yet we have plants from Central America forming one-species
stands
> over thousands of hectares, totally displacing the native flora
and
> fauna. Mimosa even prevents indigenous people from accessing their
> country, and Kakadu National Park spends $0.5 million every year
> just to keep it out, they see it as such a threat', she said.
>
> Mesquite, olive hymenachne, lantana, blackberry and bitou bush are
> all recognised as Weeds of National Significance under other
federal
> measures. All are very clearly rampant invaders of valuable
natural
> ecosystems, but none are listed under the EPBC Act, Dr McFadyen
> said.
>
> 'One of the worst offenders is the African gamba grass, still
being
> promoted and planted as pasture for cattle in the north', Dr
> McFadyen said.
>
> 'This is a monster of a grass that can grow over four metres high.
> It seeds prolifically and invades surrounding woodland savannah
> country - and when it burns the heat is just too much for the
> eucalypts, which die.'
>
> 'The result is goodbye eucalypt woodland with its complex of
> associated plants, birds and other animals, and hello African
> grassland which allows very few of these species a look in', she
> said.
>
> 'It does make me wonder what a foreign plant has to do to get
> attention from conservationists. I sometimes think we are up
against
> a prevailing misinformed mindset that sees all green plants as
> essentially the same - as passive, friendly and just part of
> nature.'
>
> 'Try telling that to a landowner or park manager battling rubber
> vine, cat's claw creeper, gorse, broom, boneseed, bridal creeper
or
> any of the dozens of highly invasive foreign plants that chew up
> huge amounts of time and money on a daily basis around Australia.'
>
> Dr McFadyen said that recent research was beginning to paint a
> picture of how threatening weeds were to native plants and
animals.
>
> 'There has been a serious underinvestment in this ecological
impact
> research for many years, but we are now starting to get a better
> handle on it. We now know, for example, that weeds are a
significant
> threat to over one third of endangered species nationally,
including
> within 13 World Heritage Areas - and our international
> responsibilities to protect them are very clear', she said.
>
> 'In NSW, where the Weeds CRC commissioned work in 2006, weeds are
> known to be a direct threat to almost half of the threatened
species
> listed for that state. We know, for example, that the habitat of
the
> northern corroboree frog is directly threatened by blackberry
> invasion, and the native rice flower by bitou bush and lantana.'
>
> The lack of research and data for individual species makes it
> difficult to pin-point specific threats with the precision that
> scientists would like, Dr McFadyen said. But we do understand the
> sorts of changes that weeds cause, and how these tend to affect
> local flora and fauna.
>
> 'We know, for example, that nectar-feeding birds such as lorikeets
> will abandon bushland when their food source is displaced by weeds
> that do not produce nectar.'
>
> That's something that's obvious, but there's a lot more going on.'
>
> The reality is that such displacement of native plants, birds and
> other animals is happening quietly on a vast scale across the
> continent, as weeds gradually make their environment less
attractive
> and less supportive, Dr McFadyen said. Climate change will also
add
> real pressure.
>
> 'The really big weakness we have as custodians of this natural
> heritage', Dr McFadyen said, 'is that too often we only address
the
> biodiversity issue at points or times of crisis, when certain
> species are threatened with imminent extinction. That is reflected
> in the language we use', she said.
>
> In the meantime, Dr McFadyen said, we seem to be largely unaware
of
> the immense changes we have caused to this heritage, and which
> continues to degrade wherever weeds get the upper hand.
>
> 'In fact, now that wholesale land clearing has largely stopped,
> weeds constitute the number one threat to biodiversity. This is a
> widely observed phenomenon around the world.'
>
> The end point of this very long-term process of weed invasion is
> hard to predict, but it is not likely to be good news for our
native
> flora and fauna, Dr McFadyen said.
>
> 'We need to understand this much better and plan and act
> accordingly, not carry on as if all green plants are equal. The
> nation is not a Peter Andrews production system.'
>
> Contacts
> Dr Rachel McFadyen, CEO, Weeds CRC, 0409 263
>
> Images and further information
> High resolution weed photos can be downloaded directly from
> www.weeds.crc.org.au/publications/media.html
> Most of the photos on the Weeds CRC's new image gallery are also
> available in high resolution
> www.weeds.crc.org.au/main/image_gallery_index.html Contact Jenny
> Barker - 08 8303 7250 or jennifer.barker@...
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------
> Dr. M. Mahadevappa
> Advisor, JSS Rural Dev. Foundation. Mysore - 570 004
> Ex-Chairman, ASRB, Ex-Vice Chancellor UAS, Dharwad
> # 1576, 1st Cross, Chandra Layout
> Bangalore - 560 040 , Karnataka, INDIA
> Phone: (080) 23216040
> Email: mahadevrice@...
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> Now that's room service! Choose from over 150,000 hotels
> in 45,000 destinations on Yahoo! Travel to find your fit.
>

From Enviroweeds mailing list

WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED

Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management
Media Release

11 July 2007

WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED

One of the best laws in the Western world on ecological protection,
Australia's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
(1999), is not being used when it comes to the widespread threat
posed to the environment by foreign plants, according to Dr Rachel
McFadyen, CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed
Management.

Speaking at the Biodiversity Extinction Crisis Conference in Sydney
today, Dr McFadyen said that the EPBC Act allowed action once a 'key
threatening process' had been identified and declared. Examples of
official recognition so far included the rabbit, fox, goat, feral
cats, the root rot-fungus phytophthera, long-line fishing, climate
change and cane toads.

However, not a single invasive plant had been listed as posing a
significant threat, Dr McFadyen said.

'Yet we have plants from Central America forming one-species stands
over thousands of hectares, totally displacing the native flora and
fauna. Mimosa even prevents indigenous people from accessing their
country, and Kakadu National Park spends $0.5 million every year
just to keep it out, they see it as such a threat', she said.

Mesquite, olive hymenachne, lantana, blackberry and bitou bush are
all recognised as Weeds of National Significance under other federal
measures. All are very clearly rampant invaders of valuable natural
ecosystems, but none are listed under the EPBC Act, Dr McFadyen
said.

'One of the worst offenders is the African gamba grass, still being
promoted and planted as pasture for cattle in the north', Dr
McFadyen said.

'This is a monster of a grass that can grow over four metres high.
It seeds prolifically and invades surrounding woodland savannah
country - and when it burns the heat is just too much for the
eucalypts, which die.'

'The result is goodbye eucalypt woodland with its complex of
associated plants, birds and other animals, and hello African
grassland which allows very few of these species a look in', she
said.

'It does make me wonder what a foreign plant has to do to get
attention from conservationists. I sometimes think we are up against
a prevailing misinformed mindset that sees all green plants as
essentially the same - as passive, friendly and just part of
nature.'

'Try telling that to a landowner or park manager battling rubber
vine, cat's claw creeper, gorse, broom, boneseed, bridal creeper or
any of the dozens of highly invasive foreign plants that chew up
huge amounts of time and money on a daily basis around Australia.'

Dr McFadyen said that recent research was beginning to paint a
picture of how threatening weeds were to native plants and animals.

'There has been a serious underinvestment in this ecological impact
research for many years, but we are now starting to get a better
handle on it. We now know, for example, that weeds are a significant
threat to over one third of endangered species nationally, including
within 13 World Heritage Areas - and our international
responsibilities to protect them are very clear', she said.

'In NSW, where the Weeds CRC commissioned work in 2006, weeds are
known to be a direct threat to almost half of the threatened species
listed for that state. We know, for example, that the habitat of the
northern corroboree frog is directly threatened by blackberry
invasion, and the native rice flower by bitou bush and lantana.'

The lack of research and data for individual species makes it
difficult to pin-point specific threats with the precision that
scientists would like, Dr McFadyen said. But we do understand the
sorts of changes that weeds cause, and how these tend to affect
local flora and fauna.

'We know, for example, that nectar-feeding birds such as lorikeets
will abandon bushland when their food source is displaced by weeds
that do not produce nectar.'

That's something that's obvious, but there's a lot more going on.'

The reality is that such displacement of native plants, birds and
other animals is happening quietly on a vast scale across the
continent, as weeds gradually make their environment less attractive
and less supportive, Dr McFadyen said. Climate change will also add
real pressure.

'The really big weakness we have as custodians of this natural
heritage', Dr McFadyen said, 'is that too often we only address the
biodiversity issue at points or times of crisis, when certain
species are threatened with imminent extinction. That is reflected
in the language we use', she said.

In the meantime, Dr McFadyen said, we seem to be largely unaware of
the immense changes we have caused to this heritage, and which
continues to degrade wherever weeds get the upper hand.

'In fact, now that wholesale land clearing has largely stopped,
weeds constitute the number one threat to biodiversity. This is a
widely observed phenomenon around the world.'

The end point of this very long-term process of weed invasion is
hard to predict, but it is not likely to be good news for our native
flora and fauna, Dr McFadyen said.

'We need to understand this much better and plan and act
accordingly, not carry on as if all green plants are equal. The
nation is not a Peter Andrews production system.'

Contacts
Dr Rachel McFadyen, CEO, Weeds CRC, 0409 263

Images and further information
High resolution weed photos can be downloaded directly from
www.weeds.crc.org.au/publications/media.html
Most of the photos on the Weeds CRC's new image gallery are also
available in high resolution
www.weeds.crc.org.au/main/image_gallery_index.html Contact Jenny
Barker - 08 8303 7250 or jennifer.barker@adelaide.edu.au

From Enviroweeds mailing list

WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED


Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management
Media Release

11 July 2007

WEED THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY BEING IGNORED

One of the best laws in the Western world on ecological protection,
Australia's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
(1999), is not being used when it comes to the widespread threat
posed to the environment by foreign plants, according to Dr Rachel
McFadyen, CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed
Management.

Speaking at the Biodiversity Extinction Crisis Conference in Sydney
today, Dr McFadyen said that the EPBC Act allowed action once a 'key
threatening process' had been identified and declared. Examples of
official recognition so far included the rabbit, fox, goat, feral
cats, the root rot-fungus phytophthera, long-line fishing, climate
change and cane toads.

However, not a single invasive plant had been listed as posing a
significant threat, Dr McFadyen said.

'Yet we have plants from Central America forming one-species stands
over thousands of hectares, totally displacing the native flora and
fauna. Mimosa even prevents indigenous people from accessing their
country, and Kakadu National Park spends $0.5 million every year
just to keep it out, they see it as such a threat', she said.

Mesquite, olive hymenachne, lantana, blackberry and bitou bush are
all recognised as Weeds of National Significance under other federal
measures. All are very clearly rampant invaders of valuable natural
ecosystems, but none are listed under the EPBC Act, Dr McFadyen
said.

'One of the worst offenders is the African gamba grass, still being
promoted and planted as pasture for cattle in the north', Dr
McFadyen said.

'This is a monster of a grass that can grow over four metres high.
It seeds prolifically and invades surrounding woodland savannah
country - and when it burns the heat is just too much for the
eucalypts, which die.'

'The result is goodbye eucalypt woodland with its complex of
associated plants, birds and other animals, and hello African
grassland which allows very few of these species a look in', she
said.

'It does make me wonder what a foreign plant has to do to get
attention from conservationists. I sometimes think we are up against
a prevailing misinformed mindset that sees all green plants as
essentially the same - as passive, friendly and just part of
nature.'

'Try telling that to a landowner or park manager battling rubber
vine, cat's claw creeper, gorse, broom, boneseed, bridal creeper or
any of the dozens of highly invasive foreign plants that chew up
huge amounts of time and money on a daily basis around Australia.'

Dr McFadyen said that recent research was beginning to paint a
picture of how threatening weeds were to native plants and animals.

'There has been a serious underinvestment in this ecological impact
research for many years, but we are now starting to get a better
handle on it. We now know, for example, that weeds are a significant
threat to over one third of endangered species nationally, including
within 13 World Heritage Areas - and our international
responsibilities to protect them are very clear', she said.

'In NSW, where the Weeds CRC commissioned work in 2006, weeds are
known to be a direct threat to almost half of the threatened species
listed for that state. We know, for example, that the habitat of the
northern corroboree frog is directly threatened by blackberry
invasion, and the native rice flower by bitou bush and lantana.'

The lack of research and data for individual species makes it
difficult to pin-point specific threats with the precision that
scientists would like, Dr McFadyen said. But we do understand the
sorts of changes that weeds cause, and how these tend to affect
local flora and fauna.

'We know, for example, that nectar-feeding birds such as lorikeets
will abandon bushland when their food source is displaced by weeds
that do not produce nectar.'

That's something that's obvious, but there's a lot more going on.'

The reality is that such displacement of native plants, birds and
other animals is happening quietly on a vast scale across the
continent, as weeds gradually make their environment less attractive
and less supportive, Dr McFadyen said. Climate change will also add
real pressure.

'The really big weakness we have as custodians of this natural
heritage', Dr McFadyen said, 'is that too often we only address the
biodiversity issue at points or times of crisis, when certain
species are threatened with imminent extinction. That is reflected
in the language we use', she said.

In the meantime, Dr McFadyen said, we seem to be largely unaware of
the immense changes we have caused to this heritage, and which
continues to degrade wherever weeds get the upper hand.

'In fact, now that wholesale land clearing has largely stopped,
weeds constitute the number one threat to biodiversity. This is a
widely observed phenomenon around the world.'

The end point of this very long-term process of weed invasion is
hard to predict, but it is not likely to be good news for our native
flora and fauna, Dr McFadyen said.

'We need to understand this much better and plan and act
accordingly, not carry on as if all green plants are equal. The
nation is not a Peter Andrews production system.'

Contacts
Dr Rachel McFadyen, CEO, Weeds CRC, 0409 263

Images and further information
High resolution weed photos can be downloaded directly from
www.weeds.crc.org.au/publications/media.html
Most of the photos on the Weeds CRC's new image gallery are also
available in high resolution
www.weeds.crc.org.au/main/image_gallery_index.html  Contact Jenny
Barker - 08 8303 7250 or jennifer.barker@...

Livestock owners in trouble as supplies dwindle to nothing

05.06.2007
By NICOLE RICHARDSON
THAT old saying "make hay while the sun shines" has been called into
question thanks to just too many sunny days of late.

The heavy rain over the weekend was too little too late for south-
east Queensland's hay stocks.

Livestock owners have been making a run on hay supplies, forcing
some produce businesses to ration as the last bales head out the
door.

Phil Parker, the manager of Sauers Produce and Garden Centre at
Cooroy, said they had been surviving on limited hay supplies for two
months and drastic measures needed to be taken to ensure it went as
far as possible.


"It's a snowballing effect now because if (regular customers) can't
buy it off me they go elsewhere," Mr Parker said.
"They panic buy, and it just strips it.

"We were trying to hold on by limiting people but we just couldn't
keep up the stocks. We knew we were going to run out, so the
inevitable has happened."

And Mr Parker said it would be at least another six months before
more stock arrived.

"Theres not enough water for grass hay and there's really not
enough water to keep the lucerne going. It wasn't growing quickly
enough to meet demand."

Mr Parker said although he managed to source some bulking products,
they weren't easy to get hold of and some animals would be forced to
survive on pellets alone.

"People are going back to things like horse and pony pellets just so
they can give their horses something to eat," he said.

"They don't have enough grass in their own paddocks to sustain them,
so this is going to have a knock-on effect for a lot of people."

But the problems won't stop there if frosts hit grass and lucerne
growing areas.

Any damage done to those stocks will extend the problem by weeks,
according to Mr Parker.

"At the moment, they're saying six weeks until supply arrives, but
that could blow out to two months.

"We may not have any winter supplies," he said.

And the problems don't stop there.

"If they start bringing in hay you've got to watch for weeds like
Parthenium coming in with the hay," Mr Parker said.

"If that happens, we're going to have another problem to deal with."

Mr Parker has some advice for horse and cattle owners.

"Conserve whatever feed you've got.

"Everyone's going to have to change their feeding regime ... it's
going to be a really sticky one."

  http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/localnews/storydisplay.cfm?
storyid=3736721&thesection=localnews&thesubsection=&thesecondsubsecti
on=

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the IPRNG
group.

   File        : /CICLOSPSORIN PROOF.pdf
   Uploaded by : pankajoudhia <pankajoudhia@...>
   Description : Paper II by Dr. Srinivas

You can access this file at the URL:
http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/IPRNG/files/CICLOSPSORIN%20PROOF.pdf

To learn more about file sharing for your group, please visit:
http://help.yahoo.com/help/in/groups/files

Regards,

pankajoudhia <pankajoudhia@...>

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the IPRNG
group.

   File        : /Retention of allergic potential.doc
   Uploaded by : pankajoudhia <pankajoudhia@...>
   Description : Paper I by Dr. Srinivas

You can access this file at the URL:
http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/IPRNG/files/Retention%20of%20allergic%20potenti\
al.doc

To learn more about file sharing for your group, please visit:
http://help.yahoo.com/help/in/groups/files

Regards,

pankajoudhia <pankajoudhia@...>

---Please find our latest article on the subject.
Regards,
Srinivas


      
________________________________________________________________________________\
____
Park yourself in front of a world of choices in alternative vehicles. Visit the
Yahoo! Auto Green Center.
http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/

Dear Dr Oudhia,
We have however reported that the compost retains its
allergic potentail and that the compost can propagate
the dermatitis.
Regards,
Srinivas
PS Am sending a paper which has been accepted by the
Indian Journal of Dermatology Venereology and Leprosy
and will bge published soon.

--- Pankaj Oudhia <pankajoudhia@...> wrote:

> 'Congress grass' makes good compost, says researcher
>
> Nagpur, June 3: In research that could turn a
> liability into an
> asset and benefit millions of farmers across the
> country, a vicious
> weed that sucks vital micronutrients from the soil
> and inhibits
> growth of other plants in the vicinity besides
> causing allergy among
> humans was turned into compost of superior quality
> that resulted in
> a higher yield in a test crop.
>
> The conclusion is the result of a detailed study of
> the
> biodegradation of the biomass of parthenium
> hysterophorous, commonly
> known as 'congress grass' in India, into compost,
> carried out by Dr
> Gouri Shrikrishna Kshirsagar, a lecturer in Biology
> at Labour Camp
> Junior College at CAD (Central Ammunition Depot) in
> Pulgaon Camp in
> Wardha district in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.
>
> This was the first time in the country that the
> congress grass,
> compost was subjected to extensive analysis and
> field trials.
>
> Rasthrasant Tukdoji Maharaj (RTM) Nagpur University
> recently awarded
> a doctorate in science to Dr Kshirsagar for her
> research on the
> topic. According to Dr Kshirsagar, compost prepared
> from 'congress
> grass' resulted in up to 88 per cent higher yield in
> wheat and
> relatively higher vegetation in mustard during field
> trials.
>
> This was in addition to the common benefit of pest
> control
> associated with the 'usual' compost prepared from
> other kind of
> biomass, Dr Kshirsagar told UNI.
>
> Converting 'congress grass' into compost would
> contribute in
> preventing its rapid proliferation by getting rid of
> its seeds. It
> will also check but also of the hazardous toxic
> substance found in
> the weed, 'parthenin,' which caused severe allergy
> among humans, she
> said.
>
> Dr Kshirsagar said that the compost made from
> 'congress grass' had
> higher content of phosphorous and potash, thus
> making it good for
> crop that needed more of these nutrients. It also
> resulted in better
> soil texture by improving the water-retention
> capacity and porosity
> of the soil, she said.
>
> --- UNI
>
>
http://www.newkerala.com/news5.php?action=fullnews&id=35256
>
>
>



      
________________________________________________________________________________\
____
Luggage? GPS? Comic books?
Check out fitting gifts for grads at Yahoo! Search
http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=oni_on_mail&p=graduation+gifts&cs=bz

'Congress grass' makes good compost, says researcher

Nagpur, June 3: In research that could turn a liability into an
asset and benefit millions of farmers across the country, a vicious
weed that sucks vital micronutrients from the soil and inhibits
growth of other plants in the vicinity besides causing allergy among
humans was turned into compost of superior quality that resulted in
a higher yield in a test crop.

The conclusion is the result of a detailed study of the
biodegradation of the biomass of parthenium hysterophorous, commonly
known as 'congress grass' in India, into compost, carried out by Dr
Gouri Shrikrishna Kshirsagar, a lecturer in Biology at Labour Camp
Junior College at CAD (Central Ammunition Depot) in Pulgaon Camp in
Wardha district in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

This was the first time in the country that the congress grass,
compost was subjected to extensive analysis and field trials.

Rasthrasant Tukdoji Maharaj (RTM) Nagpur University recently awarded
a doctorate in science to Dr Kshirsagar for her research on the
topic. According to Dr Kshirsagar, compost prepared from 'congress
grass' resulted in up to 88 per cent higher yield in wheat and
relatively higher vegetation in mustard during field trials.

This was in addition to the common benefit of pest control
associated with the 'usual' compost prepared from other kind of
biomass, Dr Kshirsagar told UNI.

Converting 'congress grass' into compost would contribute in
preventing its rapid proliferation by getting rid of its seeds. It
will also check but also of the hazardous toxic substance found in
the weed, 'parthenin,' which caused severe allergy among humans, she
said.

Dr Kshirsagar said that the compost made from 'congress grass' had
higher content of phosphorous and potash, thus making it good for
crop that needed more of these nutrients. It also resulted in better
soil texture by improving the water-retention capacity and porosity
of the soil, she said.

--- UNI

http://www.newkerala.com/news5.php?action=fullnews&id=35256

Micro Terror

Parthenium: A weed, it came in with imported US wheat in the '50s.
Today it has taken root on vast tracts of arable land and is a
serious allergen.

AGRICULTURE: BIO-SECURITY
Micro Terror
With virtually no quarantine laws, India can be an easy target for
bio-terrorism


Debarshi Dasgupta



Tougher Vigil

The government is proposing to ensure foreign bio-agents and pests
do not enter the country:

Laboratories in each district to detect harmful microbes

Better quarantine facilities at sea ports and airports

Special training of manpower to deal with any emergency

Setting up of national agency for interception and management of
invasive biotics of threat to bio-security proposed
***

Alien Attack
Some pests and weeds accidentally introduced into the country:

Parthenium: A weed, it came in with imported US wheat in the '50s.
Today it has taken root on vast tracts of arable land and is a
serious allergen.

Cotton Leaf Curl Virus: Originated in Pakistan. It has brought down
cotton yields by 15 per cent.

Coffee Berry Borer: Came in from Sri Lanka in 1998 and has hit
plantations in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Tomato Leaf Curl Virus: Its origin is unknown. The disease is
rampant in parts of Karnataka, killing tomato crop.


http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20070611&fname=Seeds+(F)
&sid=1