18 take part in training on plant-disease management

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, February 15

A 10-day ICAR-sponsored short training course on ‘Application of molecular epidemiology and simulation modelling for plant disease management’ organised by the Department of Plant Pathology, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), started on February 13.

Dr Narinder Singh, Head, Department of Plant Pathology, and Director of the course, said a total of 18 candidates, including six women, from different states of India are participating in the programme.

Dr Gurinder Kaur Sangha, Dean, Post Graduate Studies, PAU, who was the chief guest of the inaugural session, emphasised the role of modelling to understand the main determinants of epidemic development. “By utilising the modelling approach, one can study the behaviour of the diseases in population and can identify critical factors driving epidemics,” she observed. Dr Sangha also laid stress on the fact that though the role of human monitoring cannot be replaced by an mathematical model, we can harness the information provided by different models to make the future strategies. Dr Narinder Singh said the training programme schedule includes 41 discussion lectures and practicals on the advances in the simulation modelling and molecular epidemiology of important plant disease.