Bio-Control Research Laboratories (BCRL)




PCI’s pioneering work in the bio-control field led to the establishment of BCRL in June 1981. It was the first commercial bio-control laboratory in the country with several innovations and standards of mass production of bio-control agents to its credit. The underlying objective was to perfect lab-to-land technology; i.e., developing delivery mechanisms for various bio-control agents so that they are made available to end-users in different parts of the country at reasonable rates.

These efforts have created great awareness and demand for eco-friendly and integrated pest management techniques and have been recognised through the prestigious National Award for Excellence in Research and Development Efforts in the Industry, in the Agro-Industry Category in 1993, given by the Department of Scientific & Industrial Research (DSIR), Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India. Currently, BCRL is in the process of consolidating and expanding its facilities to meet anticipated future demands.

History

In 1979, an operational field trial project for suppression of the pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella) employing the “Gossyplure hollow fibre” controlledrelease sex pheromone, was undertaken near Bhatinda, Punjab.

This extensive project, carried out jointly with the Directorate of Plant Protection
Quarantine & Storage (PPQ&S), Directorate of Agriculture-Aviation, New Delhi, Conrel - an Albany International company from the US and the Indian Cotton Mills Federation, Bombay, was a great success and proved that the pink bollworm was the major problem on cotton in Punjab. The effectiveness of biological control was demonstrated when subsequent yields increased by almost 34%.

The next year, at the All India Bio-Control Workshop held at the Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, the Project Coordinator, AIRCP on Biological Control of Crop Pests and Weeds, invited PCI to set up a research and development laboratory for biological control. In 1981, Bio-Control Research Laboratories (BCRL), was born.

BCRL has recently moved to its new premises on the outskirts of Bangalore. Spread over a large campus, the new facility is used exclusively for research and production of bio-control agents. It has a large glass house, modern process equipment and experimental fields for raising crops and evaluation of various beneficial organisms in a real-time environment.

The new facility is envisaged to become an institution to impart training and research facilities to researchers, students, extension workers and farmers. To kindle the quest for research, one wing of the complex has been earmarked specifically for housing a separate laboratory facility for students to carry out research work. There is a well-equipped audio-visual training room, library and exhibition hall.

Extension workers from various Government agencies are trained regularly and foreign students study in-house. Visits by large groups of farmers, organised through cooperatives and NGOs, are a regular feature at the lab. Recognition was received from UAS, Bangalore for M.Sc./ Ph.D. students to carry out their research at BCRL.

This association culminated in a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) being signed between the two institutions, for collaborative research, training and extension, thus making BCRL the first and so far only, private institution to have done so in the country.

Major Project

The National Agricultural Technology Project (NATP), funded by the World Bank and administered by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), in association with the Department of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore. Titled "Improving Commercial Scale Production and Formulation Technology for Nuclear Polyhedral Viral Pesticides", it is the first such project ever sanctioned to a private bio-control laboratory.

The single most important aspect in promoting biological control is awareness. Farmers have been used to traditional methods of spraying and therefore it is imperative that this awareness is created at grass-root level. Often, queries from farmers for new products lead to research for newer components in the package.

A team of Managers and field staff from PCI is at hand, comprising Technical Sales Officers and Field Assistants, all with a background in entomology – they are either M. Sc. or B. Sc. Agri. After a period of thorough training, they are constantly in the field, sharing the farmers’ experiences and providing solutions to their problems. Field demonstrations and awareness creation is their charter.

PCI stalls are a regular feature in kisan melas and other agricultural fairs. The recently set-up Field Education and Extension (FEE) Unit, headquartered at BCRL, has taken on this mantle. It carries out dedicated fieldwork through trials and validations of different products, imparts education, spreads awareness and collects feedback from farmers and general data and information from the field.