BioVoice News August 2017 Issue 3 Volume 2 | Page 95

Radha Mohan Singh has said that agricultural scientists have played a significant role in bringing Green Revolution and developing research and technology. Vigyan Kendras; 19 farmers and 80 scientists, including 30 women. The Minister congratulated the three best-ranked Universities, Official Language Awardees and other winners for their outstanding achievements and contributions. NEW METHOD DEVELOPED TO IDENTIFY PESTS WITH PRECISION Scientists at the Centre for DNA Taxonomy, Zoological Survey of India in Kolkata, have developed a DNA barcoding technique to identify thrips insect species in India and found that this technique is effective. It could be of immense value as thrips cause huge losses to crops such as onion, chilli, brinjal, capsicum, watermelon and tomato. Identifying thrips correctly can help design relevant pest management strategies to prevent these losses. At the event, 122 awards were presented for excellence in 19 various categories. It includes 3 institutes; 2 AICRPs; 12 Krishi Researchers collected 336 insect samples from 78 locations in India. The sample collection was done for 4 years between 2011 and 2015. In 3 years, they have made a library of 370 DNA sequences that can be used for precisely identifying these plant pests. DNA analysis was done to analyze the sequence of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase gene, said Kaomud Tyagi, who is the first author on the study. BIOVOICENEWS.COM 95