Ferdous-e Elahi

Identification and Management of Bacterial Soft Rot of Potato

Potato is one of the most popular food crops in Bangladesh. In some countries, it is used as alternative to rice or wheat, but mainly as a vegetable in Bangladesh. It contributes alone around 54% of the total annual vegetable production. It is reported that in Bangladesh, every year due to storage diseases, around 2-9% losses of tubers take place per Potato storages. Among all the biotic diseases, Bacterial soft rot is considered as one of the most destructive vegetables disease in storage and transit conditions. As very little is known about the characteristics of Bacterial soft rot of Potato in Bangladesh, my research focuses on the identification of the causal agent of Bacterial soft rot of Potato up to the subspecies level and development of proper chemical and biological control methods against it.

Borlaug Higher Education for Agricultural Research and Development (BHEARD) Graduate PhD Fellow

Education

• MS Plant Pathology ShereBangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh
  Dissertation topic: Role of Mycorrhiza on growth and nutrient uptake by different agricultural crops in arsenic amended soil

• BS Agriculture, Honors, ShereBangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Experience

Research Scientist, Plant Pathology Division, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Bangladesh

Activities

• American Phytopathological Society
  APS Press, booth volunteer, 2014 Annual Meeting, Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Plant Pathology Graduate Students Association

Other

2014, Leadership-development training, Michigan State University (Borlaug Higher Education for Agricultural Research and Development)