Executive Summary : | With growing human population, the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides has raised by many folds causing a severe negative impact on the soil nutrient balance, eutrophication, ground water as well as air pollution. To reduce the non-targeted adverse impacts of conventional pesticides on ecosystem and biodiversity, pesticides developed implementing nanotechnology for precision agriculture are currently receiving a lot of attention. The use of nanoparticles that can serve as nano-pesticides (NPs) has become a necessity. NPs provide a smart delivery system for pesticides to the plants and had proved their efficacy in terms of pest control, crop productivity and environmental sustainability over bulky chemical pesticides. To the best of our knowledge most of the studies done so far have utilized metallic chemical based precursors, which have tendency to further pollute the environment and have higher chances of invading non-target species. In lieu of the above-mentioned problem, there has been a paradigm shift towards green synthesis methods whereby plant extracts and microbial inoculum are mostly utilized. Microalgae as sustainable photosynthetic bio-factories with inherently rich metabolite concentration have received significant focus recently as precursor for plant growth bio-stimulants. However, the use of algal consortium for nanoparticle synthesis has been sparsely explored. Thus, with the hypothesis that algae-based metabolites could supplement the bio-efficacy of the synthetic pesticides and reduce their concentration during usage, the proposed study attempts to develop algae-based nano-pesticidal composite for Fall Armyworm (FAW) , which is a prudent pest for maize crops in most parts of India. The project also proposes the field scale evaluation of pesticidal potential of microalgae-based nano-pesticide composites against FAW in maize crops for the state of Mizoram, India. The state of Mizoram has been selected as the potential study location as it encompasses mostly farmers below poverty line, and FAW had been reported to cause serious damage to maize, significantly affecting their income. The results obtained however, will also be extrapolated to other Indian states. The success of the nanoparticle bio-composite in controlling FAW and adding to the nutritional, growth and development of maize would not only benefit the crop yield ensuring food security but also serve as a template for future eco-friendly algae-based nano-pesticide formulations towards sustainable ecosystem |
Co-PI: | Dr. Bunushree Behera, Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology, Patiala, Punjab, Dr. senthilkumar Nachimuthu, Mizoram University, Aizawl, Mizoram |