Cavities in the earthen embankments of irrigation canals, drains, small dams, etc., have caused havoc. Recently, two years earlier, floods were caused in Patiala Nadi in Patiala district, Punjab. It was due to washing away of embankments. Technical opinion revealed that one of the cause may be the holes created by the rodents. In the National News Bulletin on Doordarshan on April 10, 1991 at 2130 hours, it was televised that 8% of the food items of the nation are being spoiled by the rodents and themain anti-rodent is the fiery bird 'Owl'. The technique is, however, cumbersome and it involves the expenditure in the management of bringing up of these birds in large numbers and also their environmental hazards. A number of poisonous chemicals are also available to control the rodents, but did not find favour with the field engineers because of the environmental pollution.
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