Boro growers in Rajnagar upazila of the district are worried about the yield of the main crop of the area this year due to attack of blast disease.

Experts said adverse weather, use of low quality seeds and delay in plantation are the main causes behind the outbreak.

The worst affected areas are Dholiarbondo, Diglargaon, Tarachong and Gorgaon villages in the upazila.

Visiting the areas recently, this correspondent saw that the sheaves of affected plants are drying up.

"I sprayed insecticides on the field but that did not help. The disease first attacks the branch, which dries up slowly," said Harun Ahmed, a farmer of Gorgaon village.

Md Joynal Mia of Tarachong village said the pest attacked his three acres of Boro land.

"On the advice of agriculture officials, I sprayed medicines, which helped to get rid of the pest," he said.

Sudam Das of Diglargaon village said Boro paddy on his seven bighas of land is getting damaged by the disease and he is trying his best to check it as

per advice from agriculture officials.

Sheikh Azizur Rahman, upazila agriculture officer of Rajnagar, said they are cooperating with the farmers and trying their best to control the situation in different ways, including spraying insecticides.

Dr AHM Mahfuzul Haque, chairman of plant pathology and seed science department at Sylhet Agriculture University, said the blast disease attacks Boro croplands through the seeds and airborne spores.

"This fungal disease mainly attacks the croplands during the

flowering stage. Rise of temperature amid cloudy sky causes its outbreak.

"Especially BRRI Dhan-28 fields have been affected by the disease. Use of chemicals may control the disease but if the adverse weather continues farmers should take protective measures in advance," he added.

Shahjahan Chowdhury, deputy director of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) in Moulvibazar, said the blast disease in Boro fields of Rajnagar upazila is under control and it will have very little effect on the production.