ABSTRACT
Suresh Babu, Territory Manager for Jadcherla, was a worried person. Standing in the middle of a cotton eld, he could clearly see the telltale signs of an extensive bollworm attack. is was the second year that farmers in Andhra Pradesh had planted BT cotton, supposedly resistant to bollworm attacks. Acreage under BT cotton had increased substantially since last year. Owing to premium pricing, a major section of farmers had opted for BT cotton seeds from illegal third-party sources. e quality of these seeds was always under doubt. Suresh Babu had taken a big risk by giving a sales plan of Spintor that matched last year’s sales volume. Spintor was highly eective in controlling the bollworm pest and was a premium brand in the market. e big risk taken seemed to be turning in his favour a few days ago as bollworm attacks were reported to be at the same level as last year. Yet, Suresh could not believe his bad luck. A few feet away, the farmer was lling up the spraying machine with a mix of water and a cola-based soft drink. A rumour had spread through the district that cola-based soft drinks were particularly eective in resisting bollworm attacks. Within a few days, cola-based beverages were selling at a premium in the market. is meant that Spintor sales would not be anywhere near the quantities that Suresh had stocked at dealers and distributors.
