‘Yellow rust’ spotted in three Pathankot villages, farmers cautioned

The three villages effected include Dibku, Bhanwar and Dhaki, while in Ropar it was noticed in Anadpur Sahib Ropar block area recently. “We noticed yellow powdery strips on the green leaves of the crop and immediately informed the officials who visited the fields and sprayed fungicide,” said farmers of Bhanwar village.

The officials and farmers of entire sub-mountainous region of the state which included parts of Ropar, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur districts are kept on high alert and have been asked to conduct regular surveys of the crop.

Dr Amrik Singh, Block Agriculture Development Officer, Pathankot, said that though yellow rust has been detected in in the three villages but it has been controlled with timely action.

“Now, we are organising village level camps of farmers to educate them to take immediate action and not to panic,” he said.

What is Yellow Rust?

A fungal disease which manifests as powdery yellow stripes on leaves. These stripes hinder photosynthesis, make the grains shrivel and affect growth of the plant. Windy and cloudy weather helps it to spread during wheat growing season.