UP: Aligarh district administration issues alert over likely locust attack in India

Even as the state of Uttar Pradesh is struggling to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak, the Aligarh district administration has now sounded an alert over a likely locust attack.

Officials have issued the advisory after swarms of locusts were spotted in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer city.

The agriculture department has geared up and remains vigilant. Besides, the farmers have also been given information on the issue,

Desert locust move in large groups, called swarms, and can eat crops up to their own weight every day. When millions of locusts descend on a crop, they destroy everything. The desert locust is considered the most destructive migratory pest in the world and a single swarm covering one square kilometre can contain up to 80 million locusts.

Last year too, almost 17 districts in UP were put on alert after the locust swarms which travelled from Pakistan invaded India and made their way to at least five states, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.

According to District Agriculture Officer Dr. Vinod Kumar Singh, on the basis of the advisory issued by UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), Rajasthan has sounded an alert for a possible locust attack and directed authorities to plan, coordinate and execute a strategy to repulse it.

Following this, the UP government has issued directions to be fully prepared and ensure a timely response to tackle an infestation of the short-horned grasshoppers.

Locust swarms entered India from Pakistan where they flew in from Iran in 2019. From Rajasthan, locusts entered Madhya Pradesh via Neemuch and advanced to Ujjain and Dewas. The locust swarms also made their way to Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.