Locusts swarm towards South Asia

After swarming over Pakistan, locusts have now arrived in India. These pests devoured crops in Rajasthan, Punjab and Maharashtra, and are now in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The locusts will soon be heading towards Bhopal and Odisha. These two Indian states are near the border of Bangladesh, giving rise to concern among agriculturalists in the country, as well as the government.

The government’s Department of Agricultural Extension has issued cautionary directives and the entomology department of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) is monitoring the movements of the locusts in India. The government has involved the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) in this task. Preparations are on at a national level to form a taskforce and an app regarding the locusts.

Last year, another destructive insect, army worms, had launched an attack in Bangladesh, spreading over maize fields in 31 districts of the country. However, immediate action by the government managed to contain the pests and only 4 percent of the crops were damaged.

Meanwhile, at the request of the prime minister’s office, FAO has prepared a report on a possible locust attack in Bangladesh and what is to be done. FAO’s global locust monitoring body, Locust Watch, assisted in preparing the report. According to the report, there is little fear of the locusts attacking Bangladesh. It also recommended against the unnecessary use of toxic pesticides to destroy the locusts.

Minister for agriculture, Abdur Razzak, speaking to Prothom Alo, said that there is no fear of locusts coming to Bangladesh. However, all preparations have been taken at the field level to ensure that no significant damage is done in the advent that the locusts arrive.

In the meantime, the department of agricultural extension has issued directives to all districts and upazilas regarding locusts. Basically they have said that if locusts are spotted anywhere, the government must immediately be informed. Also, instructions have been given about what pesticide is to be used against the locusts.

The FAO report, however, pointed out that unnecessary panic had been created in Bangladesh last year when a locust-like insect has appeared in Teknaf, Cox’s Bazar. FAO warned that the farmers must not use poisonous pesticides unnecessarily in such cases. It said that while the pesticide kills the locusts, it renders the crops, the soil, the water and the surrounding environment extremely toxic.

Speaking to Prothom Alo, director of BARI’s entomology department, Debashish Sarkar, said rearing ducks in crop fields has proven to be an effective method of destroying locusts in Gujarat and other states of India. Ducks devour locusts in huge numbers.

He went on to say there is less possibility of locusts coming to Bangladesh this year, but we should be prepared for possible attacks in the future. Attention should be paid to rearing ducks and other natural methods of dealing with the situation.

* This report has been rewritten in English by Ayesha Kabir