Family - Indian Society of Weed Science

e taken if the identified plant is not a troublesome weed and also helps in protecting the weeds of economic
importance and conserving the biodiversity. Being able to identify the weeds is important as it helps in determining
the expected level of the problem as weeds vary in the extent to which they can reduce the yield and quality or to the
extent to which they are beneficial. Weed identification may form the first step in balancing the needs for weed control
with the requirements for biodiversity and more sustainable production methods.
An effort has been made to brought out this publication entitled “Hand book on Weed Identification” to help in
identifying the weeds easily. I hope this publication would be of great help to scientists, researchers, quarantine
officials, academicians and students.
I thank ICAR for giving me the opportunity to serve in this position. The financial support by the Department of
Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture, under National Weed Surveillance project is duly
acknowledged. The encouragement by the present and former Directors, scientist colleagues, and technical and other
staff members of DWSR is worth to recognize. The support from PIs of the AICRP-WC centres and Area Coordinators
of the NIWS is unforgettable. The technical support by Mr. Sandeep Dhagat, Mr. Virendra Kumar Kamalvanshi and
Mr. V.K.S. Meshram in shaping up this publication is acknowledged.
March, 2012 V. S. G. R. NAIDU
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