Farmers and experts in India are expecting new attacks by swarms of locusts and are calling on the authorities in the country to combat the rapidly growing swarms.
Desert grasshoppers have settled on around 35,000 hectares of arable land in central India and endanger the cultivation of vegetables and the cultivation of legumes. Experts now see the authorities in the affected states as having a duty to prevent the swarm of locusts from growing in the coming weeks in order to prevent the insects from eating away the summer fruits.
So far, the damage has been limited.
The states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra in the west of India as well as the states of Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh in the north have been struggling with desert locusts for decades. Especially in years when it is hotter than usual.
Earlier this year, farmers were barely able to save their wheat and oilseed crops from the previous locust plague. There is a local grasshopper early warning system.
Source
Hansa Terminhandel GmbH
