Tell Pak to check locust breeding: Capt to Modi

Chandigarh
Concerned over the spate of attacks on crops by swarms of locusts in neighbouring areas of southern Punjab bordering Rajasthan, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to direct the Union Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian High Commission in Islamabad to immediately take up the issue with the government of Pakistan from where the insects were emanating.

Although Rajasthan has been taking the required action, the best method of control is to manage the breeding ground itself, which incidentally falls in the adjoining desert area of Pakistan.

Capt Amarinder Singh, CM

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Capt Amarinder said there had been a sustained attack of locust swarms on crops in Rajasthan recently. A significant number of these pests have also entered the areas of southern Punjab. “Although Rajasthan has been taking the required action, the best method of control is to manage the breeding ground itself, which incidentally falls in the adjoining desert area of Pakistan,” he wrote.

The CM thus emphasised the need to take up this issue directly with Pakistan and press its government to take effective steps to sanitise the breeding areas of locusts.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, mandated to control locusts internationally, might also be asked to take effective steps in Pakistan to control breeding, said the CM.

At the national level, a coordinated locust control mechanism should be made effective by use of modern technology, helicopters and drones for spraying insecticides etc. to control the spread of the pestilence, he added.

Capt Amarinder warned that any failure to control these swarms could lead to serious implications and consequence for agricultural production in India, which would ultimately affect the commodity prices and food security of the country.

The CM further suggested that the Ministry of Agriculture should also coordinate with the FAO to ensure that the breeding grounds were sanitised and brought under control.

The Agriculture Department has already pressed into service several special monitoring and survey teams in the vulnerable parts to keep a close tabs on the situation. These teams have been constantly surveying the districts of Bathinda, Muktsar and Fazilka in the vicinity of Rajasthan border.