The Sindh government on Monday issued a fresh alert over another locusts’ attack in the province and coastal areas of Balochistan citing a report of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. In a series of messages posted on the Twitter account of the provincial agriculture department, it said that the FAO South West Asia has no threat from Africa and Arabian Peninsula, however, in case of any presence at source, wind directions in the next 24 hours warrant migrations from Rajasthan and Gujarat towards Sindh. Detailing the Sindh areas that might suffer from the recent threat, it said that Nara (Khairpur), Khipro (Sanghar), Umarkot, Chachro, Mithi, Diplo and Nagarparkar (Tharparkar), and Badin areas may face locust attack. The agriculture department further said that the FAO recommends that surveys in Sindh and Balochistan should continue to timely detect the presence of any stage of Desert Locust especially in the Jamshoro area of Sindh and area along the coastline of Balochistan. The department said that special survey efforts are required in Tharparkar, Jamshoro, and Lasbela by concerned teams as migrations between these areas are quite possible. Responding to the alert, the Sindh Agriculture Minister Ismail Rahu said that the provincial teams are ready to deal with the situation and had already taken measures in different districts of the province. He also stressed the federal government to take prior preventive measures so that the loss of poor farmers could be avoided. It is pertinent to mention here that the fresh warning has come after the National Locust Control Center (NLCC) on September 10 declared that Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh have been cleared of the swarms of locusts. However, swarms of locusts still present in Balochistan, the NLCC said in a statement.
Sindh govt warns of another locusts attack
