Locust attack spreads to 30 districts in MP; Chhattisgarh on alert

Absence of standing crops is a point of relief, control measures in full swing

locusts-pti Swarms of locust in the walled city of Jaipur, Rajasthan | PTI

Swarms of locusts have attacked fauna in almost 30 districts of Madhya Pradesh, causing widespread damages to vegetation and forests. The point of relief is that there is no major standing crop at present in Madhya Pradesh and thus damage on this count is minimal.

Currently the focus is on prevention and control and the ground damage will be assessed only later, assistant director of agriculture of Madhya Pradesh, A.K. Bisen told THE WEEK.

Meanwhile, with swarms from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra posing threat, Chhattisgarh has also gone into alert mode with preventive pesticides sprayed and district administrations on bordering areas preparing for control measures. Unusual preventive steps like hiring of DJs, apart from beating drums and utensils and using high decibel sound of vehicles without silencers to scare the swarms have also been suggested to the local people. DJ has already been booked in the Sahaspur Lohara block of Kawardha district bordering Madhya Pradesh. Fire brigades have also been put on alert.

Currently, floriculture and sugarcane crops are standing in some areas of Chhattisgarh and the state government has already announced payment of compensation in case of crop damage.

Meanwhile, in Madhya Pradesh, the swarms were active in Sidhi and Niwari districts in eastern part of the state on Wednesday, Bisen said, adding that the movement of the pests was noticed since May 18 and fresh swarms continue to fly in from Rajasthan, posing challenge.

“Since the movement of the locust swarms depend on the wind direction, we are keeping watch and control measures will be taken accordingly. Apart from the central team, which uses its own implements to spray pesticides, the district administrations have also been asked to use tractor-based sprays and fire brigades to spray pesticide to kill the locusts. Also preventive measures are being taken,” the assistant director said.

As of now, the districts that have been impacted include Mandsaur, Ratlam Neemuch, Agar Malwa, Khandwa, Khargone, Hoshangabad, Harda, Sehore, Raisen, Chhatarpur, Tikamgarh, Sidhi, Niwari, Panna among others.