Agriculturists demand aircraft for locusts spraying

Infestation may cause losses worth Rs600b to economy, they warn

HYDERABAD: In the wake of locust attacks, the Sindh Chamber of Agriculture (SCA) has asked the government to immediately carry out aerial spraying using at least 10 planes in the province.

Addressing a press conference in Hyderabad, SCA president Syed Miran Muhammad Shah bewailed the government's apathy on the issue, saying that its inaction had led to locusts damaging crops in nine out of 23 agricultural districts.

"A much larger swarm is on its way from Iran but we don't see any worthwhile measures being taken to contain even the existing swarms," deplored Shah. He contended that if not controlled, locusts could cause a loss of Rs600 billion to the agricultural economy of Pakistan.

Citing statistics released by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, Shah said 38 per cent of crops in the country, including wheat, cotton, mangoes and flowers, were what locusts fed on.

He recalled that when locusts invaded the country last year, after a long lapse of around three decades, the SCA had urged the federal government to carry out aerial spraying. "But only one plane was provided [for the purpose], and that, too, crashed while spraying in Sadiqabad, Punjab," he added.

Shah also recalled that before the locust attacks this year, he had written a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan, drawing his attention to the menace and requesting aerial spraying to be carried out.

"We also met Sindh government officials and Sindh Agriculture Minister Muhammad Ismail Rahoo several times between March and early May, asking them to utilise their own financial resources for aerial spraying, but to no avail," he lamented, adding that the Centre's food security wing was also approached for help but in vain.

Shah emphasised that the primary responsibility of dealing with the menace of locusts lay with the federal government.

The SCA demanded that 10 planes be immediately arranged for the aerial spraying, with six of them being stationed in districts near Sindh-Balochistan border. Two of those should be used for spraying in Tharparkar, Umerkot, Sanghar, Nawabshah and Khairpur districts and two in Hyderabad division, said Shah.

"Even drone technology can be employed for targeted spraying, besides ground spraying," said Shah.

According to the SCA, Malir, Kashmore-Kandhkot, Khairpur, Sanghar, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Nawabshah, Ghotki, Sukkur and Dadu are currently most affected by locust attacks. 

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2020.