ABSTRACT
Helicoverpa: A challenge Insect damage is a major biotic stress to the crop plants. With the continuous increase in human population and a growing concern for food and nutritional security, it has become increasingly essential to develop strategies to control the losses caused by insect pests. The last five decades have witnessed the unregulated use of chemical pesticides to control insect pests. However, overuse of chemical pesticides has led to contamination of soil, water and vegetation. Pesticide residues have been found in agricultural produce such as food grains, fruits, vegetables and milk. Moreover, insect pests such as Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) have quickly developed resistance to chemical pesticides. Helicoverpa armigera is a widespread and highly polyphagous pest causing drastic yield losses in important crops such as chickpea, pigeonpea and cotton. Lack of satisfactory sources of resistance in primary and secondary germplasm of most crops makes it difficult to breed varieties resistant to this pest. Biotechnology has the potential to salvage this situation through gene transfer across species.
