Interception of pathogens and insect pests in exotic cereals and millets germplasm introduced during 2010–2013

During 2010–13, the introduced cereals and millets crop germplasm (60, 133 samples of 450 consignments), which includes germplasm of cultivated species, wild species, races of other cultivated species etc. was subjected to quarantine processing at National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources Regional Station, Hyderabad for reducing the risk of introduction of new pests/races/biotypes of pests. Several pathogens of quarantine importance, viz., Alternaria padwickii and Aphelenchoides besseyi on paddy; Alternaria raphani on wheat; Pestalotia macrotricha on maize; Alternaria solani on sorghum and pearl millet; Colletotrichum graminicola on sorghum, Sitophilus granarius on sorghum etc. were intercepted. The significance and risk of such interceptions is discussed in this paper. Literature survey indicated that pearl millet and finger millet are the new host records for Alternaria porri and finger millet for Fusarium oxysporum. Most of the wild species/races/other cultivated species of pearl millet and sorghum are also turned out to be the new host records for Drechslera setariae and D. sorghicola.