To improve oil palm yield in Jagtial, the Horticulture Department has released Elaeidobius kamerunicus insects from Africa for pollination. With native pollinators vanishing, officials hope the imported species will enhance fertilisation and fruit formation across 3,000 acres of plantations.

Jagtial: To enhance oil palm yield, the Horticulture Department has introduced insects from Africa for cross-pollination in orchards across the district.

The insects, known as Elaeidobius kamerunicus, have already been released in some fields. Oil palm, cultivated over 3,000 acres in Jagtial three years ago, has now reached the flowering stage. However, natural cross-pollination has been hampered by the disappearance of native insects, with fertilisers and pesticides driving them away from orchards.

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