Forest Minister Jogu Ramanna on Sunday said changes in climate and increase in soil temperature over a period had heralded the arrival of new kinds of pests. The Minister said such pests were causing loss to standing crops across the district and needed a proper study aimed at their control. The Minister assured farmers of conducting a district-wide survey to assess damage to standing crops due to pestilence. Mr. Ramanna also assured the farmers that agriculture scientists would study the phenomenon of new kind of pestilence to take remedial measures and sought to allay the fears of the farmers. Accompanied by agriculture department officials and agriculture scientists, Mr. Ramanna visited cotton and soyabean fields with red gram as an intercrop at Deepaiguda in Jainad mandal to see for himself the new kinds of pests attacking the red gram crop. Boll worms He said boll worms were destroying the red gram crop. Source - http://www.thehindu.com