Dieback and fruit rot, caused by Colletotrichum species, are significant pre- and post-harvest
diseases affecting chili (Capsicum spp.), with C. capsici being the most prevalent species in
India. A study evaluating the resistance of 41 capsicum genotypes to these diseases revealed
varying levels of resistance. While some moderately cultivated lines and crosses showed
resistance, genotypes such as Bhut Jolokia, PBC-380, and IC-383072 remained symptomless.In vivo, inoculation trials with C. capsici determined that nine days post-
inoculation is the optimal time for assessing disease resistance. These screenings identified
nine highly resistant and eleven highly susceptible genotypes. Consistently resistant
genotypes to dieback included BS-35, BS-20, BS-28, Punjab Lal, Bhut Jolokia, Taiwan-2, IC-
383072, and Pant C-1. Additionally, BS-28, CC-0189, and Hisar Sakti demonstrated
immunity to fruit rot. Further analysis of genotypes inoculated with C. capsici isolates
revealed the presence of two distinct pathotypes. Eleven genotypes, including Bhut Jolokia,
BS-27, BS-28, BS-35, BS-37, CC-0189, Hisar Sakti, IC-326272, and IC-383072, exhibited
resistance to fruit rot. Challenges of this study were genetic variability among genotypes,
environmental factors, selection pressure, lack of clear biomarkers, pest & disease
complexes, limited availability of resistant genotypes. These findings contribute in
encapturing of resistant genotypes against fruit rot and dieback and succeed. and emphasize
the importance of detailed studies on the prevalent pathogen strains in specific regions to
enhance resistance breeding efforts. The newly identified resistant genotypes serve as
valuable resources for advancing breeding programs targeting dieback and fruit rot resistance.

A field experiment on the effect of pruning treatments was conducted in 2022-23 on six -year –
old sweet orange plants (Blood Red and Mosambi) in the experimental farm of the Department
of Fruit Science, College of Horticulture and Forestry, Neri, Hamirpur (HP). The investigation
comprised five treatments: T1 (2.5 cm Heading back), T2 (5 cm Heading back), T3 (10 cm
Heading back), T4 (15 cm Heading back), and No heading back (control). The data obtained
from the study revealed that higher intensity of pruning enhanced vegetative growth, as
observed in the treatment with 15 cm Heading back. All flowering characteristics, including
time of bud break, time of first flowering, fruit set, and full bloom, were recorded to be earlier
in the treatment with 10 cm Heading back. Lower intensity of pruning, such as 5 cm and 2.5
cm Heading Back, resulted in lesser vegetative growth compared to 15 cm Heading Back, but
there was also a reduction in fruit yield and quality. The maximum fruit yield (14.16 kg/plant)
and fruit quality, including TSS (8.73 °B), reducing sugar (3.68 %), and total sugar (6.23 %),
were recorded in the treatment with 15 cm Heading back.

A survey was conducted in major chilli growing districts of Telangana in India during
2022-24 to assess the land holdings of the farmers, the commonly cultivated chilli
varieties/hybrids, insecticide usage and use of different groups of insecticide molecules
against T. parvispinus in predominantly chilli growing areas of Telangana state of India. The
results revealed that the highest average land holding (7.44 acres/ farmer) was documented in
Khammam district with the highest (87.50%) cultivation under Teja segment (F1 hybrid)
under 93.75% flood irrigation. Regarding insecticide usage, the highest number of insecticide
sprays (29.88) with the lowest waiting period of 7.25 days were observed in the Khammam
district, while it was lowest in the Jagtial district with 12.63 days waiting period between
the sprays and 9.38 total number of applications. It was also noted that, the highest average spray fluid was
used in Khammam district (253.75 litres/acre), followed by Mahabubabad (241.25 litres),
Peddapalli (239.38 litres), Nagarkurnool (237.50 litres) and J. Gadwal (227.25 litres), while
lowest spray fluid was used in Jagtial district (211.63). Regarding the usage of insecticide
molecules, a total of 23.00 insecticide molecules were used in chilli. The highest number of
insecticide molecules (23.00) were used in Khammam district, followed by Mahabubabad
(20.00), Peddapalli (18.00), Nagarkurnool (17.00) and the lowest number in Jagtial district
(14.00). Among the insecticide molecules, the highest usage of fipronil 5 SC to an extent of
64.58% was observed, followed by diafenthiuron 50 WP (58.33%), imidacloprid 17.8SL
(56.25%), thiamethoxam 25 WG (54.17%) and dimethoate 30 EC (39.58%). Among the
insecticide molecules, 34.78 % of insecticides come under highly toxic and moderately toxic
categories. The survey results concluded that, the highest usage of insecticide molecules was
found in Khammam district which recorded the highest incidence of T. parvispnus (56.75%),
whereas, lowest usage of insecticides were reported from Jagtial district, which recorded
lowest incidence (20.25%) of thrips and it was also observed that most of the farmers were
ignorant of the use of recommended insecticides, pesticide residues, pesticide safety
measures and eco-friendly pest management practices of chilli in the survey locations.

The trend of consuming market based processed products like cookies, pizza due to change in
income and social status of people has led to numerous attempts of value addition of it to
optimize the nutritional benefits. The present study was conducted to develop cookies and
pizza base by using non-conventional raw ingredients. Cookies (C 1 , C 2 , C 3 and C 4 ) were
prepared from refined wheat flour, finger millet and barnyard millet flours in proportions
80:10:10, 70:15:15, 60:20:20 and 50:25:25, respectively. Pizza base was prepared by using
whole wheat flour, finger millet flour and little millet flour such as (P 1 ) 80:10:10, (P 2 )
70:15:15, (P 3 ) 60:20:20 and (P 4 ) 50:25:25 with addition of peanuts (5%) and flax seeds (5%)
in all. All the developed products were analysed for nutritional quality and sensory properties
using standard procedures. All the products were found to contain higher nutrients such as
calcium, phosphorous, iron, dietary fibre and ash as compared to the control products (C 0 and
P 0 ) prepared from refined wheat flour only. Shelf-life evaluation of the products showed their
safe consumption in between 60 days and 3 days for the cookies and pizza base, respectively.

This study investigated the variability of 21 tomato genotypes, along with a check
variety Dhanshree, for various growth, yield, and quality parameters over two growing
seasons (Rabi 2021-22 and Rabi 2022-23) using a Randomized Block Design (RBD) with
three replications. The findings revealed that phenotypic variation was generally greater than
genotypic variation for most traits. High heritability estimates were noted for plant height,
fruit weight, pericarp thickness, equatorial diameter, and number of the locules per fruit. The
study faced challenges in accurately differentiating genetic variation from environmental
influences due to the narrow genetic base of certain genotypes and fluctuating environmental
conditions during the seasons. Despite these challenges, the research successfully identified
key traits with high heritability and genetic variability. These results indicated that direct
selection based on these traits could effectively identify superior tomato genotypes, providing
valuable insights into genetic variability and heritability within the studied population.

Replant disease has an enormous effect on the productivity of pome (apples, pears) and stone
fruits (peaches, plums), especially when new orchards are planted on previously cultivated
soils. The disease is prevalent in various regions worldwide, including Himachal Pradesh,
India, where it impacts orchard profitability significantly. Both biotic (e.g., soil-borne
diseases, nematodes) and abiotic variables (e.g., soil compaction, nutrient imbalances)
contribute to the problem, resulting in decreased growth and production. Traditional chemical
management practices, such as soil fumigation, are becoming more limited due to
environmental concerns. As a result, sustainable solutions such as biological control with
beneficial bacteria, compost additives, and the use of biofumigant crops are being
investigated. Integrated management solutions, which combine biological and organic
treatments, offer promise for reducing replant disease while improving soil quality. More
study is required to optimize these tactics, improve microbial inoculant formulations, and
create replant-tolerant rootstocks for long-term orchard sustainability.

Nutrient management is one of the greatest challenge in obtaining sustainable yield of crop over a
long period. The increasing food demands of a growing human population and the need for an
environmentally friendly strategy for  sustainable agricultural development  require significant attention for
enhancing crop productivity, hence the present experiment was conducted at Agriculture Research Station,
Achalpur (Dr. PDKV, Akola) Maharashtra state of India with an aim to achieved sustainable productivity.
Experiment was conducted in a Randomized Block Design with six treatments and four replications. The
average rainfall and its distribution were found normal in all five years of the experimentation. The PCA of
five year rainfall shows not much variation in the dimension. Seed treatment with beejamrut, azotobactor
and PSB along with biological pest control was followed in all treatments. Five rows of sunhemp, one row
of ambadi and two rows of Marigold were sown at the border of experimental plot. Five years of pooled
results revealed that colour cotton + black gram in 2:1 proportion at 60 cm spacing (mulching of black
gram after plucking of pods) + vermicompost @ 2.5 t ha-1 + jeevamrut 10% at 50 DAS recorded highest
seed equivalent yield (1318 kg ha-1) with highest B:C ratio (1.92).

The black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) larva is belived to
be a potential means to degrade organic matter such as food waste and divert the waste
away from landfills. Thus the experiment on biodegradation by composting kitchen waste
into organic fertilizer using the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae was conducted
at AICRP on PHET of Dr P.D.K.V Akola with an objectives to investigate the
decomposition efficiency of the black soldier fly larvae on kitchen waste and obtaining the
organic compost. The experiment had 10 different feeding rates of BSFL were tested
against a common substrate which was kitchen waste. In each container fixed quantity of
kitchen waste was kept i.e. 20 kg and 6 days old larvae of BSF larvae were released in the
proportion of 500 larvae to 5000 larvae as per treatments. 100 gm samples from each
treatment, waste and compost were analyzed for various parameters. The study showed
that by adding 2000 larvae per 20 kg kitchen waste for 22 days in batch feeding, gives a
higher percent Substrate reduction (87.95%), and higher feed consumption (18.57 %). The
study revealed that the % organic carbon, N, P, K were observed within the range of 24.02-
29.56%, 1.35-1.63%, 0.64-0.80% and 1.32-1.49% respectively. Compost obtained from T4
i.e. (2000 larvae per 20 kg kitchen waste) was recorded of best quality compost with
favourable EC, ph, nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. Although it is cost effective,
short duration procedure but there are certain drawbacks such as unavailability of
sophisticated machinery, skilled labour and establishing optimal humidity, temperature
and mating conditions to facilitate BSF development are also a challenges.