'Keep doors, windows closed', Delhi issues locust advisory

People have been directed to keep their doors and windows closed and cover outdoor plants with plastic sheets, after swarms of crop-destroying desert locusts reached the outskirts of Delhi on Saturday. National capital's IGI Airport has also been kept on high alert following a swarm of locusts were spotted near to the key installation.

New Delhi:After swarms of crop-destroying desert locusts reached the outskirts of Delhi on Saturday, the city government directed the district magistrates to make all possible arrangements to distract them.

People have been directed to keep their doors and windows closed and cover outdoor plants with plastic sheets. The District Magistrates have also been asked to be on high alert.

"District Magistrates are advised to deploy the adequate staff to make all possible arrangements for guiding the residents to distract the locusts," the advisory by agriculture joint director A.P. Saini stated.

The government said that they can be distracted by way of making high decibel sound through beating of drum utensils, playing high volume music on music systems, firing crackers and burning of neem leaves.

Over the past few months, locust swarms have attacked and destroyed crops in various states, including Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh.

Three kilometre-long swarm of desert locusts reached the outskirts of Delhi after entering Gurugram on Saturday morning.

Earlier, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai called an emergency meeting to discuss the situation pursuant to the locust attack in neighbouring Gurugram.

According to a Union Agriculture ministry report, 84 districts of Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, spread over an area of 114,026 hectares, have been in the grip of locusts till June 21, 2020.

National capital's IGI Airport has also been kept on high alert following swarm of locusts were spotted near to the key installation.

The spotting took place near to national highway 8's stretch which connects the national capital to Gurugram around 11.00 a.m., sources said.

Accordingly, the airport was kept at high alert as operations could have been affected due to the incoming locust swarm.

However, due to a change in wind direction the swarm has moved in a completely different direction altogether.

Last month, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had issued safety guidelines regarding flight operations in view of the threat posed by locust attack in certain parts of the country.

Further, the guidelines also said that ground handling agencies should be aware that locust swarms pose risk to parked aircraft as well, and hence possible air inlets and probes should be covered.

Notably, locust, denotes a massive group of certain grasshopper species which in a swarming stage devastate crops. This stage can lead a swarm of locust having over a billion individual inspects.

Recently, swarms of locusts attacked Iran, Pakistan and many states.

With inputs from IANS