Overview
- The Union Agriculture Ministry, which set up the expert task force on Friday, gave it one week to submit findings to Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
- The panel will visit the worst-hit litchi blocks in Bihar to measure crop loss and propose immediate and long-term steps for farmers and authorities.
- The group is chaired by the director of ICAR’s National Research Centre on Litchi and includes Bihar’s horticulture and plant protection officials along with ICAR and NBAIR scientists.
- The outbreak threatens Muzaffarpur’s GI-tagged Shahi litchi and an estimated 300,000 metric tons grown on about 32,000 hectares across northern districts, putting many growers’ incomes at risk.
- The litchi stink bug sucks sap, causes fruit drop, and strikes during blossom when sprays are usually avoided, and experts have urged wide-area community sprays though no large program is announced yet.