Prevalence and Spread of Potato Cyst Nematodes, <I>Globodera</I> spp. in Northern Hilly Areas of India
Y. S. Chandel, Surendra Singh Bhadu, Rajan Salalia, Sharmishtha Thakur, Satya Kumar, Vishal Singh Somvanshi, Abhishek Mukherjee, R. K. Walia
Abstract
Potato cyst nematodes (PCNs), Globodera rostochiensis (Woll.) and G. pallida (Stone), are globally important pests of potato prevalent in the Nilgiri area of South India. PCNs were first intercepted from North India at Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (HP) in 2010. Subsequent surveys in the hilly areas of North India have revealed the occurrence of PCNs in several districts of HP, Uttarakhand and Jammu & Kashmir, despite domestic quarantine against this nematode. High populations of PCN were mainly encountered in the Potato Seed Multiplication Farms that supply seed potato to farmers. Here, a hypothesis on the dissemination of PCNs within India is proposed.