Paddy crop in over 1,500 hectares of land in the district has been infected with blast disease, popularly known as benki roga. It may be mentioned here that paddy was cultivated on 74,900 hectares of land in the kharif season in the district this year. The infection is reported in Sagar and Sorab taluks where paddy is cultivated under the drill sowing method. The fungus that causes the disease initially infects the aerial and root tissues of paddy saplings and then enters the plant’s vascular system and blocking supply of water and nutrients. The infection spreads through water and air. The colour of the infected sapling turns to ash from green.