Vol. 9, Issue 6, Part J (2025)

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the staple food crop of Odisha. False smut disease of rice caused by Ustilaginoidea virens is gaining importance in Odisha due to its widespread distribution. The disease causes significant yield loss to rice. So, roving method of survey was carried out during kharif, 2024 in six districts of Odisha to assess disease incidence and severity of false smut disease in those areas. The data revealed that both the disease incidence and severity were in low to high level in the areas surveyed. Among all the districts surveyed, maximum disease incidence and severity were noticed in Bhadrak district followed by Sundargarh district.