Uttar Pradesh directs 15 districts to remain vigilant after locust attacks in Jhansi, Sonbhadra, Jalaun, Lalitpur

Lucknow: Agriculture Department of Uttar Pradesh Government on Sunday asked 15 districts to remain vigilant following locust attacks in four districts of the state. In a press statement, the Agriculture Department said that along with Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab, locust attacks were seen in Jhansi, Lalitpur, Sonbhadra, Jalaun districts of the state. Keeping this in mind the department has advised Agra, Mathura, Saharanpur, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Mahoba, Banda, Chitrakoot, Hamirpur and Mirzapur districts along with Jhansi, Lalitpur, Sonbhadra, Jalaun districts to remain vigilant. In the statement, the department said that actions to combat locust attacks have been initiated. “State and district level disaster relief teams have been constituted to combat locusts. In various districts of the state, 486 vehicles, 5,365 tractors mounted sprays, 2,172 Nagar Nigam tanker/tractors, 2,423 Nagar Nigam sprayers, 29,744 sugar mills/sugarcane department sprayers, 54,967 sound-producing instruments, including DJ, have been arranged,” read the statement. “A total of 86 vehicles of the fire department, 1,288 tractor mounted sprayers, 312 Nagar Nigam tractor/tanker, 204 Nagar Nigam Sprays and 18,261 sound-producing instruments have been arranged in Jhansi, Lalitpur, Jalaun, Sonbhadra, Mirzapur, Mahoba, Banda, Chitrakoot, Hamirpur, Agra, Mathura, Saharanpur, Shamli, Muzaffarpur and Baghpat districts,” the statement added. Locusts, known as ‘Tiddi Dal’ in north India, is a type of insect that usually moves in large numbers and devastates crops. Earlier this year, several parts of Rajasthan had reported locust attacks. The Locust Warning Organisation (LWO) of the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has warned of another attack in May-June this year. Notably, the first locust attack of this year was reported from Ganganagar, a district in north Rajasthan bordering Pakistan, on 11 May.