Locusts found dead soon after reaching Chitral

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CHITRAL: Locusts have been found dead in the remote hilly areas of Madak Lasht in Lower Chitral district and Khot in Upper Chitral district.

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Officials said the cold weather killed the locusts after a windstorm brought them to the region at nighttime.

Deputy director of the agriculture department Rafique Ahmad said a small number of locusts, which reached the area along a violent storm, had survived but as individuals they couldn’t harm the foliage as they did in other areas of the country.

“Fortunately, it was raining as the locusts arrived here so the temperature was too low for them to survive. They died instantly,” he said.

The official said he sent two teams consisting of entomologists to the villages to guide villagers on how to respond to the situation while two local teams were formed to furnish reports on a daily basis. He said if locusts swarmed the area, the department was fully prepared for effective response. 

In the midst of coronavirus impact on health and livelihoods, Pakistan is also facing an imminent danger of locust attacks that may ultimately affect food security, it emerged during a recent hearing in the Supreme Court of a case pertaining to the prevention of coronavirus pandemic.

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