Vol. 2, Issue 11, Part B (2016)

Abstract
Agricultural practices have been seeing transformation from age old traditional practices to the present-day advanced procedures. But the indiscriminate use of chemicals for increasing production as well as for controlling pest population has rendered the soil less fertile and has created resurgent pest population with resistive strains. Notwithstanding, the traditional understanding about crop protection from pests infestation can be used along with modern techniques, to reduce the dependency on chemicals. Keeping this in view a survey was carried out in Korora village under Kamalpur subdivision of Kamrup district and Saikiapara & Gadhiapara villages of Mangaldai under Darrang district to collect and document the knowledge about traditional practices of pest management. It was found that the people used this knowledge right from sterilization of the seeds before sowing through harvesting of the crops to protect against pests such as thrips, rice stem borer (Scirpophaga sp.), rice hispa, rice Gandhi bug (Leptocorisa sp.) and stored grain pest as rice moth (Sitotroga cerealella), rice weevil (Sitophilus oryzae) etc. It was also observed that, though the people possessed knowledge about traditional practices of pest management majority of them do not practice it and some of them which use these techniques are small land holding farmers.