New Delhi, September 18: Locust attack in India was majorly reported in 10 States this year which included Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Haryana and Uttarakhand. The government had been undertaking several operations in coordination with State Governments for locust control. This year, the state governments of Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Punjab and Bihar have reported no crop losses in their States so far.

While speaking in Rajya Sabha on Friday, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar gave a detailed report of the state-wise crop damage caused by locust attack in India. Tomar informed that during May-June 2020, Rajasthan reported crop damage of 33% and more due to locust attack. The crops that were affected in the state include 2,235 hectare area in Bikaner, 140 hectare in Hanumangarh and 1,027 hectares in Sri Ganganagar. However, as per revised report, it has been stated that earlier submitted data was related to initial stage of crop sown in Kharif season and this area of crop loss has been re-sown by farmers. Locust Attack in India: Immature Pink Tiddi Dal Swarms, Adult Yellow Hoppers Active in Several Districts of Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat.

In Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, crop damage of 33% have been reported in 6520 hectare area of land, 4400 hectare of land, 806 hectare of land, 488 hectare of land and 267 hectare of land respectively due to locust attack this year. Locust Attack in Lucknow: Twitterati Share Videos of Swarms of Tiddi Dal Seen in UP's Capital City.

During 2019-20, locust attack was reported in some districts of Rajasthan and Gujarat. Rajasthan Government has reported that a total area of 1,79,584 hectares of 8 districts of the state was affected by locust attack during 2019-20. The State Government of Gujarat has reported that crop loss due to locust attack was observed in a total area of 19,313 hectares of 2 districts of the State during the year 2019-20.

Tomar said that for the financial year 2020-21, till now no State Government has reported distribution of relief to the farmers affected by locust attack for 2020-21. However, State Government of Rajasthan has informed that Girdawari/ survey work is underway for estimation of crop losses due to attack of locusts. The Minister added that the yield losses will be assessed through crop cutting experiments and compensation will be paid to all registered farmers as per provisions of Pradhan Mantri FasalBima Yojana (PMFBY).

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 18, 2020 04:32 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).