Holes in pomegranate fruit with caterpillar inside and rotting (anar)

A bore hole on the fruit with a caterpillar inside, frass around the hole, and the fruit rotting from within is the anar butterfly, the pomegranate fruit borer. The adult lays eggs on flowers and small fruit, and the caterpillar bores in to feed, after which secondary rot sets in. It can cause heavy loss. Confirm with your KVK by opening an affected fruit. Manage it mainly during flowering and early fruit set, when the eggs and young larvae are easiest to stop. Sanitation matters: collect and destroy bored and fallen fruit so the larvae inside do not complete their cycle. Bagging individual fruits with paper or special covers after fruit set is a widely used non-chemical method that physically keeps the borer out and also improves fruit colour. Remove off-season flowers and stragglers that keep the pest going. If a spray is needed your KVK will recommend safe actives timed to flowering and early fruit, but follow the label, the pre-harvest interval, residue and MRL limits, and rotate modes of action. Bagging plus sanitation usually gives the best low-residue control, so ask your KVK how to time it for your bahar.