Paddy bug numbers have significantly decreased since the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) intensified their spraying programme.
This is according to GRDB officials including General Manager Nizam Hassan, Entomologist Viviane Baharally and Deputy General Manager Allison Peters, who spoke to Stabroek News last week.
Some rice industry stakeholders have complained of a paddy bug infestation over the past months and in a recent letter published in the Stabroek News, former Minister of Agriculture Dr Leslie Ramsammy accused the GRDB and the Ministry of Agriculture of being negligent and allowing the paddy bug problem to escalate into an emergency.
