AS the population of Pakistan is increasing rapidly, there is need of increasing the production of food grains and agricultural commodities.

Including Pakistan, the quantity and quality of dietary protein are the major problems of the food-deficient countries and experts are engaged in solving the problem. Nowadays, meat, fish, eggs, pulses and vegetables are common, to fulfil human protein requirements. Beef, wheat and potatoes contain 16, 6.9 and 1 per cent proteins, whereas pulses, viz. gram, mung, bean, lentil, black gram, red gram and cowpea vary from 11-28 per cent proteins according to variety.

Table: Seed percentage of different pulse crops

Pulses are also known as short-duration crops. All pulses require a little amount of water, hence are termed as dry crops. Moreover, all pulses play an important role in the crop rotation, and help in maintaining soil fertility.

The major pulse crops of Pakistan are gram, field peas, green gram, lentil, black gram. The red gram and cowpea are grown on a small scale. There are many constrains, caused by a number of diseases to pulse crops. The most destructive diseases are caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses and nematodes. The losses due to these diseases are estimated from 4 to 44 per cent. The government realized a need to import large quantities of pulses at a heavy cost of foreign exchange. Under the circumstances, these diseases, have the capacity to cause heavy losses, both in terms of the volume of the commodity and farmers’ income. However, wilt and blight are the most destructive diseases for all pulse crops. Gram: Gram ranks first as the pulse crop followed by green gram only in area and production. Actually, gram is almost the rabi pulse crop. successfully grown in the vast barani areas.

Wilt: In this disease, plant starts wilting and ultimately dry up at seedling and at flowering stage. Diseased plants are pulled out easily, due to the loss of the rigidity. Sometimes, sudden drooping of leaves and a few branches of a single plant are affected. Cultivation of disease resistant variety is only the most easy, economical and safe method to control wilt. However, following measures could be beneficial:

*avoid the cultivation of the gram in the diseased area for three years;

* improvements of soil and drainage conditions minimize the disease incidence;

*Use of disease free seed with suitable seed dressing fungicides before sowing;

* late and deep sowings reduce the incidence of the disease;

* mixed cropping of gram with wheat, barley, rapes, mustards, safflower, sorghum and millet help to check the disease;

* avoid the making of bhusa stacks in the field.

Blight: The disease starts from the base of the plant, which result in the death of the whole plant. The infected plants could not be differentiated in early stages from the distance. Primarily individual infected plants may be observed scattered but later on the disease appear in circular patches and ultimately the entire field come under attack, therefore, whole crop may be destroyed seeds. The control measures are same as suggested for wilt of gram.

Mung, moth and mash: Mung, moth and mash are also subjected to a number of diseases. The symptoms, perpetuation and control measures for wilt and blight diseases are near about same as described in wilt and blight of gram. Rather then wilt and blight, following are also considered very common and very destructive.

Cercospora leaf spot, In this disease the spots appear on leaves, gray to brown in colour and circular to irregular in shape. These spots increase in number and size, which turn into lesions of a reddish brown margin. The size of pods and seed is reduced, hence yield decreased considerably. The disease causing fungus is seed borne. The control measures are same as recommended for the wilt of gram.

Root and stem rot: This disease is difficult to identify in initial stages. However, dark lesions are formed on the main stalk near soil level, forming localized dark green patches. The tissues of the affected portions become weak and shredded easily. The disease causing fungi are soil-borne and remain viable for a long period. The control measures are same as recommended for the wilt of gram.

Anthracnose is also a fungal disease. Initially, small spots appear in scattered manner. The spots are usually depressed with dark centre and bright red or orange margins. The disease could be controlled by spraying suitable fungicides, but the suggestions given for the control of gram wilt may also found fruitful.

Lentil or masoor: Wilt and blight are common diseases, their symptoms, perpetuation and control measures are similar as that of wilt and blight of gram. While, an other most important disease of lentil is collar rot, The disease mostly appears at seedling stage and show rotting at ground level. The control measures are same as suggested for wilt of gram.