Staff Reporter
Peshawar
Agriculturists engaged in containing locust attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have claimed of countering two swarms of the pest in D I Khan district, but are anticipating arrival of mores in the province. ‘We have effectively countered and killed two swarms of locust in remote areas of D I Khan near Balochistan border,’ said Dr Naveed Khan, Deputy Director Department Plant Protection KP while talking to media.
A single swarm of locust consists of around 80 million of pest which can only be countered and killed through proper monitoring and targeted midnight operation when the pest is dormant and unable to fly, Dr Naveed added. Briefing about the measures being taken for stopping locust from damaging crops, Dr Naveed said the strategy adopted in D I Khan proved successful and would be replicated in other districts.
It merits a mention here that the Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had declared emergency on January 30, 2020 in nine southern districts of the province. The decision was taken to tackle pest infestation after news reports about arrival of locust in bordering areas of KP near Balochistan. Dr Naveed said so far three swarms of locust entered KP in D I Khan district at Tehsil Daraban while passing through Takht-e-Suleman mountain range of Balochistan province.
Out of three swarms, two were countered and killed while one dispersed which can re-appear in any other area of the province. He said a swarm of locust is so huge that it is spreads over an area of around four to five kilometers in sky and can consist population of around 80 million to one billion pests. The locust is scientifically known as ‘Schistocera Gregaria’ and can fly with great speed of around 15 km per hour, covering around 150 km area in a single day, Dr. Naveed told.
He said the strategy adopted by Agriculture and Plant Protection Department KP was based on monitoring of the swarm and targeting potential pockets before dawn when the pest is inactive and cannot fly. The strategy proved highly successful in containing the attack by causing huge mortality to the attacking pest, he claimed.
