Paddy bug devastation warrants aninnovative search for solution.

Apr 14, 2019 Letters

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Dear Editor,

Entomology is an intriguing subject. It practically tells you that we need insects to survive, even though many are of the belief that Noah would have been revered if he had forgotten to take a pair of mosquitoes on his ark. In these desperate times, Guyanese rice farmers would have each raised ten fingers in support of the paddy bug being excluded from the ark too.
An article in KN on April 11, “Paddy bug ravages Region 6 rice crop”, is a reminder of the kind of destruction that this creature (paddy bug) is capable of. I have been there before, as a farmer on the Essequibo Coast. A Mister Rambrich, who spoke to KN said, “This has never happened to such an extent in Berbice.” The destruction of the rice crop by paddy bugs is not an unusual occurrence in the Essequibo Coast. As recent as last crop, some farmers, despite doing the best they could in the form of spraying repeatedly with insecticide, sustained damage above 50%. The present crop is being harvested with paddy bug damage somewhere around 15 to 20%. Not a word is mentioned in the media or anywhere about this problem in Essequibo. If it is mentioned, it is done in retrospect, when somewhere else suffers.
The stigma of ‘Cinderella’ has always dealt Essequibo a sucker blow!
Rambrich, while accusing the GRDB of doing nothing to help the situation, also challenged the GRDB to seek a solution to the problem. Rambrich said, “In fact, they have an entomologist who never comes up with solutions. They are being trained and paid to do a job; let them deliver,” I do share your opinion Mr. Rambrich, based on experiences with the Entomology Department years ago in Essequibo. The GRDB Entomology Department seems only to be concerned with the tracking and termination of insects (weevil) from rice being exported from Guyana. In fact, that was the primary reason for the conception and existence of the Department of Entomology of GRDB. It was only after a massive invasion on the Essequibo around 2008 after a group of farmers, myself included, complained to the Minister of Agriculture that despite all our battles with the paddy bug, we were not graced with a single visit or a word of advice from the entomologist. Since then, the Entomology Department began to play an active role. That role has not offered anything substantive in the battle against the paddy bugs. To begin with, the GRDB methodology of checking a field for paddy bug infestation is the most bizarre and ludicrous one any logical person can contemplate. It consists of a stick about six feet in length attached to a circular wire, about 12 inches in diameter, holding a net that closes at the bottom forming a sack. The methodology involves, holding the stick as a handle and swiping the net on the paddy panicles several times at different areas in the field then checking the contents. Depending on the number of bugs in the seine, a decision is made to spray or not. It is an insult to the vision of our rice farmers who can see paddy bugs well and from experience know when to spray their crops. Their advice to keep surrounding areas free of grass is outdated to a time when it was perceived that the paddy bugs that can infest your crops come from your immediate surroundings. In my opinion, the paddy bugs come in swarms as an invasive force and can travel 10 to 15 miles in one flight lasting two to three hours in the direction of a scent emanated from the panicles of the paddy plant, keeping your immediate environment free of grass is useless as a control method in swarming conditions. In short, GRDB’s Entomology Department has nothing to offer farmers for the control of paddy bugs neither do they exhibit any willingness to seek any new innovative methods. The newly appointed paddy bug management officers (PBMO) by GRDB are not super bugs flying around eliminating the paddy bugs. The statistics on damage grains revealed that their contribution is of no effect.
Whether it is a result of changing weather pattern or biblical prophecy, no rice farmer will refute that the frequency and magnitude of the paddy bug invasion is on the increase. Mr. Rambrich suggested an aerial spray of the cultivated area as a solution. I am inclined to believe that such action will not help because I am of the opinion these bugs breed and migrate from the marshlands (swamps) beyond the cultivated areas. I had suggested that GRDB locate the areas where the bugs breed and put UV lights with zapping technology to former GRDB manager Jagnarine Singh. His response to me was, “You know UV lights can cause cancer”. My interpretation of his response was that he was concerned with the safety of the bugs because I did not recommend UV lights in the farmers’ domain.
The Entomology Department needs the services of a Helicopter to locate the areas where the paddy bugs breed. UV lights with zapping apparatus could be placed on poles, powered by solar devices could then be placed at random in these areas permanently. This is just an idea but it is worth trying, it could nip the problem in the bud.
Our rice farmers are going bankrupt. The country loses billions on the reduced amount of rice for export. The rice produced is of a poorer quality. The country spends billions on insecticides that contaminate our environment and destroy friendly insects and fish. All because of the paddy bugs. Is this not enough carnage to inspire the powers that be to try something innovative to fight the scourge of the paddy bugs?

Rudolph Singh

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