By Qudsia Bano ISLAMABAD, April 06 (INP-WealthPK): The National Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program is providing technical assistance and backstopping to all federal, provincial, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and farmer bodies across the country for implementation of the program through the Farmer Field School (FFS) approach. Dr. Saeeda, Scientific Officer at Pakistan Agricultural Research Centre (PARC), told WealthPK that the FFS strategy attempts to generate a greater understanding of essential agro-ecosystem interactions as well as sustainable farming, with a focus on reducing chemical pesticide use. The program teaches farmers how to raise healthy crops, conduct regular and critical field observations, and become experts in their fields. Farmers that are better equipped to grasp the interconnections between pests and predators are more able to make sensible plant protection decisions. The IPM is a cost-effective and ecologically friendly pest-control strategy that employs a variety of common-sense techniques. The IPM programs make use of up-to-date, comprehensive data on pest life cycles and interactions with the environment. This information is combined with various pest treatment technologies to manage pest damage in the most cost-effective way feasible while posing the least amount of risk to people, property, and the environment. Both agricultural and non-agricultural environments, such as the home, garden, and office, can benefit from the IPM strategy. Dr. Saeeda said the national IPM program is currently working on two projects: "management of CLCuV disease through IPM techniques by FFS approach" and "integrated crop management practices to enhance value chain outcome for the mango industry in Pakistan and Australia”. Objectives of this program are the initiation of disease-free nurseries, mango orchard management, IPM improvement, IPM strategies for mango field diseases and pests, postharvest research prevalence and influence, and making extension and capacity building IPM roved. Dr. Saeeda said the pre-harvest mango orchard management protocols for Punjab and Sindh provinces were produced and disseminated independently by the initiative in 2020-21. Pruning and canopy management trials yielded positive outcomes in terms of plant health, vigor, and reduced tree heights without sacrificing yield. Farmers' revenue has grown by up to Rs100,000 per acre as a result of the use of enhanced technologies. “More than 5,000 producers have received a colorful guide to help them recognize and manage mango sudden death. Furthermore, 4,000 farmers are educated about mango illnesses and how to control them during field training,” she said. The IPM makes use of all available pest management techniques, including, but not limited to, the use of insecticides sparingly. Organic food production, on the other hand, employs many of the same principles as IPM, but restricts the use of pesticides to those derived from natural sources rather than synthetic chemicals. Insects, weeds, and other living organisms do not all need to be controlled. Many creatures are harmless, and some can have a beneficial effect. The IPM programs seek to keep an eye out for pests and precisely identify them so that appropriate control decisions can be made based on action thresholds. This monitoring and identification eliminate the potential of pesticides being used when they are not required, or the incorrect pesticide being used. In the case of an agricultural crop, this could be IPM employing cultural techniques such as crop rotation, pest-resistant cultivars, and pest-free rootstock planting. These techniques of control can be extremely effective and cost-effective, with little to no risk to humans or the environment. According to the PARC scientist, farmers conduct the Agro Eco System Analysis where they collect insects, draw figures, and present their findings based on which future cultural practice and actions are selected collaboratively. Farmers become more organized, watchful, and realistic as a result of this, and if anything isn't clear, they set up some short and simple studies to settle certain ambiguous concerns. As a result, the farmers become more organized, learn to operate as a team, make their own day-to-day decisions, and become experts, reducing their reliance on chemical corporations and extension workers for crop production, and increasing their ability to handle issues on their own.