1Central Institute of Post Harvest Engineering & Technology, PAU Campus, Ludhiana 141004.
2Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal 462038.
Insect infestation accounts for majority of losses during storage of green gram. Chemical methods to prevent these losses, though effective and widely used, lead to undesirable consequences. The present study was initiated to explore possibility of using thermal disinfestation technique to control insect-pests. The exposure temperature and time to attain 100% mortality of insects (Callosobruchus Chinensis L.) and eggs in green gram were studied. The different optimum temperature and time combinations for mortality of insects were found as 50°C–5 min, 55°C–1 min, and 60°C–45 s. However, 55°C–300 s and 60°C–120 s were suitable for 100% egg mortality.
