Locust invasion of Pakistan may lead to food crisis – experts

PESHAWAR: Pakistan needs a coordinated strategy to deal with ongoing locust attacks, as the situation can result in a food emergency, agriculture officials and experts warned on Thursday.
Although the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government conducted ground and aerial spraying, Muhammad Naveed, deputy director for plant protection at the KP Agriculture Extension Department, told Arab News the insects were still entering the province from Balochistan and Punjab.
“We have conducted 20 operations through ground and aerial spray, finishing and containing the insects’ further spread. The only viable option is that all four provinces should launch a synchronized and coordinated strategy to counter the desert locusts efficiently,” Khan said, referring to KP, Balochistan, Punjab and Sindh, which have suffered the worst locust outbreaks.
“The country can face with food crisis if timely action isn’t taken,” he said.
Last week, the KP government used drone sprayers in parts of southern Dera Ismail Khan district amid an increase in locust swarms in the impoverished region.
Abdul Mateen Babar, a farmer in Dera Ismail Khan, told Arab News that locust attacks were reported in remote areas bordering Balochistan from where the insects were entering his region. “Locusts hover over ready crops like clouds in the sky,” he said.
Desert locusts, swarming short-horned grasshoppers, have been destroying crops in Africa and Asia for centuries. Their ability to move in huge swarms with great speed makes them one of the most devastating agricultural plagues.
In January last year, the locusts flew from the Red Sea coast of Sudan and Eritrea to hit Saudi Arabia and Iran. They entered Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province in March. In May, they arrived in Sindh.
The KP government declared a state of emergency after the insects entered Dera Ismail Khan in late January.
Dr. Anwar Bhittani, an agriculture expert from southern Tank district, said that locusts could now damage ready wheat crops as their breeding season starts in mid-February and will last till mid-March.
“One locust can damage food of several persons. In the current situation, the federal government should activate the departments of all the four provinces to produce a joint and synchronized strategy to deal with the looming danger,” he added.
Dr. Inamullah Khan, professor at the University of Agriculture Peshawar, said locusts naturally move to warmer places because of favorable weather conditions for their quick reproduction. They can travel 150 kilometers a day and a female insect lays up to 200 eggs at once, he added.
“The desert locusts are attacking wheat, which is our staple food. Our annual wheat production is almost 25 million tons … and our total consumption stands at 23.5 million tons annually. I fear there may be a food crisis if the insects cannot be controlled,” Khan said.