Pest attack badly affects aman plants in some areas of the district, much to the worry of farmers.

The menace has continued spreading as spraying pesticide hardly makes any impact, said farmers.

Despite recurrent floods this season, 1.24 lakh and 105 hectares of land in seven upazilas of Gaibandha district has been brought under transplanted aman cultivation against the target of 84,471 hectares, said sources of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE).

But lack of adequate rain is adversely affecting the growth of plants, they said.

Akbar Ali, a farmer of Nalsia village in Saghata upazila, said he has transplanted aman seedlings on five bighas of land, although he had to procure seedlings from different areas and re-transplant those due to damage by repeated floods.

"But pest has already attacked plants on two bighas of land, turning those reddish. And there is no sign of flowering yet," he added.

"My three bighas of aman field had gone under waist-deep water during the last flood. I made floating seedbed on banana tree raft and after receding of water I again transplanted seedlings on flood ravaged crop field. But now those are being attacked by pest," said Hyder Ali of Bonarapara village in Saghata upazila.

Helaluddin, another farmer of Sreekola village in Palashbari upazila, said aman plants on his one and a half bigha of land have been attacked with pest and spraying pesticide brought no results.

Aman plants are turning reddish and drying before growth of spikes and the disease is spreading in adjoining areas, said Jahidul Islam of Ramchandrapur village in Gobindaganj upazila.

Admitting the pest attack AKM Ruhul Amin, deputy director of Gaibandha DAE, said pest mealybug might be controlled naturally through irrigation and planting trees and bamboo branches in crop fields, so that birds can easily eat up the pest and worms.