Massive swarms of crop-destroying desert locusts have been sighted in Gurugram, which borders the Indian capital of Delhi.
The Delhi government has taken several steps, including issuing an advisory, to contain and control the locust swarms spotted in Gurugram, a city in the state of Haryana.
Multiple videos shot by residents of Gurugram city and villages in the district as well as Delhi’s Chatrapur on Saturday morning show massive clusters of locusts flying in.
The Haryana government issued a high alert after locusts entered Gurugram districts. Officials said they had taken necessary measures, including deploying tractor-mounted spraying facilities, reports NDTV quoting news agency PTI.
Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai called an emergency meeting to discuss the situation following the locust attack in neighbouring Gurugram. The minister also directed the administration to be on alert, an official said.
"As per the information we're getting, the swarms of locusts are headed towards Palwal [in Haryana]. But a small portion has entered Jasola and Bhati [at the Delhi border]. An instruction has been issued to beat dhols and drums. This is a way to ward them off... the government will issue an advisory on this," Mr Rai said after the meeting.
The District Magistrates of South, West and South West districts in Delhi have been asked to be on high alert.
The administration of Noida in Uttar Pradesh, which neighbours Delhi, has issued a similar advisory.
The city administration of Gurugram on Friday evening asked its residents to keep their windows shut and make clanging noises to ward off the insects.
"The swarm of locusts started around 11:00am. We immediately closed the windows and doors, and the society administration started bellowing hooters installed on buildings to drive away the insects," says Rita Sharma, a resident of Beverly Park 2 at MG Road in Gurugram.
Delhi Air Traffic Control directed pilots of all airlines to take necessary precautions during landing and take-off of aircraft in view of the locust swarms being seen near the airport in areas along the Gurugram-Dwarka Expressway, according to news agency ANI.
Massive swarms of desert locusts have been destroying crops in many parts of western and central India, spearing into Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab now, after Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana.
India’s central government has set up 11 control rooms to coordinate the response to the locust menace.
Locusts form swarms in Africa and fly from Iran and Pakistan to India. They are known to have an enormous appetite. They eat plants and can wreak massive damage to crops in days if left unchecked.
