EFFECT OF GAMMA-HEXACHLOROCYCLOHEXANE ON AMYLOLYTIC MICROORGANISMS OFSOIL AND AMYLASE ACTIVITY

Agricultural and industrial wastes and by-products are produced in abu ndance through various day to day operations. Carbohydrates constitute a major component of these wastes. Major quantities of such wastes ul timately find their way into soil where a vast array of microorganisms , possessing carbohydrate utilising activity, use it as a substrate (A lexander 1977). However, these microorganisms are under a constant thr eat of persistent pesticides that are added to the soil from time to t ime to control various crop pests. Both stimulatory as well as adverse effects of different pesticides on various microbial populations and their enzymatic activities have been reported (Rozsypalova 1981; Tu 19 81; Rai and Srivastava 1983; Zargar and Johri 1993; Zargar and Johri 1 994). Inspite of considerable work conducted on pesticide-microbe inte ractions, information regarding the fate of amylolytic microflora is s canty. A few reports indicate a temporary inhibitory influence of pest icides on amylolytic microorganisms and their enzymatic activities (Gr ay and Rogers 1954; Voets et al 1974; Mahapatra and Rao 1981). Simulta neously, other workers have not observed any deleterious effect on suc h microorganisms (Tu 1982; Chhonkar 1985). The present investigation w as, therefore, taken to assess the effect of gamma-hexachlorocyclohexa ne (gamma-HCH) on amylolytic microorganisms and amylase activity.