LAHORE, Sept 20: After cotton, the rice crop has also come under Leave Blast Virus attack in the central Punjab, and, according to farmers, the incidence has touched as high as 25 per cent in some areas.

Though the attack is a yearly feature for early sown crops, the spread this year has crossed economic threshold level and may threaten the final yield. The virus has spread to late sown crops as well.

According to farmers, the crop becomes susceptible to this virus with the overuse of urea. With its overdose, leaves become tender and vulnerable to attack. Normally, the agriculture department advises half a bag of urea applied twice over its life time.

The farmers, however, take easy route and apply it in one go. This creates problems for the crop.

“The problem with rice crop is that it coincides with much bigger cotton crop during Kharif season when the entire official focus is riveted on cotton,” says Hamid Malhi of the Basmati Growers Association (BGA). The officials hardly find any time for rice crop, or educate farmers on a disease, which is purely a management problem. It normally starts from non-basmati areas and spreads to involve basmati fields.

The last spell of rain has generated some hopes by completely washing the crop of any pests but the farmers and the department need to continuously monitor the crop for the next few days, he advised.