Overnight operations in Jhansi, Sonbhadra to clear swarms of locusts

Overnight operations were carried out by the authorities to clear swarms of locusts in Moth and Garautha areas of Jhansi, and in Sonbhadra district, the official said on Thursday. In Jhansi, a large number of locusts were eliminated with the spraying of chemicals all through the night but a smaller number of those who survived has moved towards Pariksha near Jhansi on Thursday morning, Deputy Director, Agriculture, Kamal Katiyar, said.

Their further movement will depend on the direction of the wind, he said. Senior officials, including those from a central team, were present during the night-long operation and a close vigil is being maintained on the further movement of locusts, Katiyar said.

Two fire brigade vehicles loaded with insecticide had been deployed in all four Jhansi tehsils besides six vehicles were kept ready at the district headquarter. Ten municipal employees with two insecticide spraying machines were posted in every block. Locusts had earlier attacked some parts of the Jhansi district on May 22 and 24. In Sonbhadra, a swarm of locusts reached Bemauri village in Ghorawal tehsil on Wednesday night where a team of the Agriculture Department sprayed chemicals till late night, killing a large number of insects. District Agriculture Officer Piyush Rai said the swarm reached the village in the evening but as there were no standing crops, no damaged was done by them. "A team from the Agriculture Department reached there at 11 pm and continued spraying chemicals till 1.30 am, killing the insects in large numbers," he added.

Taking cognizance of the matter, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had on Wednesday issued directions to district magistrates of Jhansi, Lalitpur, Agra, Mathura, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Mahoba, Banda, Chitrakoot, Jalaun, Etawah and Kanpur Dehat. At the state-level, teams have already been formed and control rooms established to track the movement of locusts.

At the district headquarter level, a nodal officer has been appointed, and a task force and control room already set up. Officials have been instructed to list elaborate details of the danger posed by locusts and precautions that need to be taken.

The details should be shared through social media, and also be made available to farmers and locals. An advisory was also issued to beat drums, tin containers, metal plates and create noise to shoo the locusts in case of an attack.

Officials of the Agriculture Department have been told to coordinate with members of the locust warning team, locals and farmers.