Cause of locust

1. Which crop is mostly affected by locust attack?
2. What cause locust attack plague?
3. How do farmers deal with locusts?
4. How much locust can eat?
5. What government is doing for farmer to get relief from locust attack?
6. Future effect of locust attack?

1. Which  crop is mostly affected by locust attack?

     Mostly locust attack to cotton, bajra, soybeans, rice, pulses, sugar cane, summer pulses, vegetables .

About now 42,000 hectares (104,000 acres) area crops have been affected by locust. Mostly 6 state are severely affected by locust attack.Affected states are: Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, some where Delhi is also seen suffering from locust plague.

2. What cause locust attack plague?

      Swarming behavior is responsible to overcrowding. Locust nervous system release serotonin, which cause them mutually attracted and form a swarm. These swarms start hampering to human life when it attack to cultivated land. due to locust cotton, bajra, maize are mostly affected. Any insect do not harm until an unless they do not grow them as a pest.

3. How do farmer deal with locusts ?    

  Farmer are trying to chase the locust from their fields at any cost.For this they are adopting several steps. some measure steps are listed below:

• Farmers are producing different kind of high pitch sound .
• Some of them are collecting locust for consumption purpose.
• some of them collect for poultry feeding purpose.
• Union govt. is coordinating with state govt. to restrict locust attack.By spraying pesticide with the help of fire brigades,drones etc

4. How much locust can eat?

      A adult locust can consume roughly as its own weight in fresh food per day. i.e one locust can eat 2 gm per day. A whole swarm of locust can complete 35,000 people food in one day.

5. What government is doing for farmer to get relief from locust attack?

      Government is trying to control the locust swarms, farmers in Rajasthan are also being provided relief as per the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) norms. In January Rajasthan govt. announced compensation of Rs 13,500 per hectare per farmer but  farmers are not seems to be satisfied.

6. Future effect of locust attack?

     Attack of locust on cultivated land is double hit on agricultural economy which is already suffering from corona virus pandemic. Due to locust attack people may have to suffer from starvation, shortage of food as locust has directly attack to agricultural fields.